MTQN^S-11! lil 7- H HARPER'S LANGUAGE BEkiEK '" LANGUAGE LESSONS: AN INTRODUCTORY GRAMMAR AND COMPOSITION FOR INTERMEDIATE AND GRAMMAR GRADES. BY WILLIAM SWINTON, A.M., PROPESSOn OP THE ENGLISH LANGUAOBIN THE UNIVERSITY OF OALIFOENIA, AtlTnOn OP "rKOOEESSIVE GEAMMAB," "BCUOOL OOMrOSITION," ETC. KEW YORK: IIAIirER & BROTHERS, PUBLISHERS, FRANKLIN 8QUAKE. 18 7 7. ^ EDUCATION DEPTi- By professor SWINTON. LANGUAGE PRIMER. 102 pp., 35 cents. LANGUAGE LESSONS. 177 pp., 44 cents. SCHOOL COMPOSITION. 151 pp., 44 cents. PROGRESSIVE ENGLISH GRAMMAR. 207 pp., 65 cents. Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1 876, by HARPER & BROTHERS, In the OfTicc of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. PREFACE. This manual forms the second book of a Language Series, consisting of four works : I. Swinton's " Lan- guage Primer ;" 11. " Language Lessons ;" III. " School Composition ;" lY. " Progressive Grammar." The author desires to state at the outset that the present class-book is in no respect a condensation of the Progressive Grammar, It is constructed on a plan of its own. Teachers have had abundant experience of misnamed Primary Grammars, and First Lines, and other grammatical skeletons, which, as they present all the hard rules of the larger works, unrelieved by illus- tration and explanation, are in reality more difficult than these larger works. This book is an attempt to bring the subject of lan- guage home to children at the age when knowledge is acquired in an objective way, by practice and habit, rather than by the study of rules and definitions. " The analytic form," says Whately, " is, generally speaking, better suited for introducing any science in the plainest and most interesting manner ; while the synthetical is the more regular and compendious form for technical study." In the Language Lessons, the analytic method is employed; while the synthetic is the form adopted in the Progressive Ch^ammar. M209512 IV PREFACE. Ill pursuance of this plan, the traditional presentation of grammar in a bristling array of classifications, no- menclatures, and paradigms has been wholly discarded. The pupil is brought in contact with the living language itself : he is made to deal witli speech, to turn it over in a variety of ways, to handle sentences ; so that he is not kept back from the exercise— so profitable and in- teresting — of using language till he has mastered the anatomy of the grammarian. Whatever of technical grammar is here given is evolved irom. work previously done by the scholar. The author is prepared to find that this plan may not suit the blind adherents of the old grammatical formalism ; but he is well assured that it w^ill meet the views of live and progressive teachers ; for such teach- ers, in their class-room instruction, are, with remarkable unanimity, beginning to use the kind of exercises that form the body of this manual. To these he would say, This is a book out of the class-room ; it is a grammar- book made by induction (and perhaps the first ever thus made) — the method pursued having been to col- lect from large numbers of school papers the difiicul- ties that children actually encounter in speaking and writing English, and then to meet these difficulties by practice and precept. A word as to the exercises. These are the hooJc. Tliey are numerous and graduated, and are given from the first with a view to composition — the immediate object of the grammar taught in the common school. The author especially solicits the attention of the teacher to these exercises, and requests at least an experimental following of the directions and suggestions given. Such PREFACE. V a co-operation he feels that he is entitled to ask, in view of the novelty in the plan of the book. He is confident that pupils who have faithfully done the work here laid down will find that they have acquired a reasonable mastery of English. If there be less of lip-service than in following the old fashion, there will assui-edly be more of living knowledge and available power. William Swinton. Teacher's Note. — In this work three methods of correcting the written exercises are suggested: 1. The exchanging of papers; 2. The writing of letters of criticism ; 3. The placing of one or more exercises upon the blackboard as a basis of oral class-criticism. It has not been thought necessary to indicate in every case the particular plan to be pursued. The teacher should vary the method from time to time. CONTENTS. Page Lesson I. Introductory 1 *' II. Tho Sentence 3 " HI. Subject and Predicate 5 " IV. Lesson in Criticising 8 *' V. Subject and Predicate U *'; VL Kinds of Words H " VIL Nouns 17 VIIL Verbs 20 '* IX. Lesson on Number 22 *' X. Irregular Numbers 26 *' XI. Irregular Singulars and Plurals 28 " XIL Letter of Criticism 31 *♦ XIIL Adjectives 34 *' XIV. Comparison of Adjectives 39 " XV. Sentences with Adjectives 42 ** XVI. Predicate Adjectives 46 *' XVII. Possessive Case of Nouns 47 " XVIIL Adverbs 60 " XIX. Phrases 63 " XX. Adjective and Adverbial Phrases 66 * * XXI. Making Sentences with Phrases 58 *• XXII. Nouns in Apposition 60 " XXIIL Verbs with Objects 63 " XXIV. Review of Nouns 66 " XXV. Pronouns 69 •* XXVI. Relative Pronouns 73 ** XXVIL Verbs— Simple Tenses 76 " XXVIII. Verbs— Formation of the Past Tense 79 " XXIX. Verbs— Compound Tenses 81 " XXX. Verbs with Pronouns 84 XXXL Moods of Verbs 86 " XXXIL Passive Verbs 89 *' XXXIIL Irregular Verbs 91 XXXIV. Phrases with Participles 94 Vlll CONTENTS. * Tagb Lksson XXXV. Conjanctions 96 " XXXVI. lleview Lesson 98 " XXXVir. Analysis of Simple Sentences 101 " XXXVIII. Analysis— Enlarged Subject 104 *' XXXIX. Analysis— Enlarged Predicate lOG * ' XL. Review of Punctuation 108 * ' XLI. Review of Making Simple Sentences 110 " XLII. Construction of Nouns 114 " XLIII. How to Parse Nouns 1 16 " XLIV. Construction of Adjectives 120 *' XLV. Misused Adjectives,. 123 *' XL VI. Agreement oif Verbs 125 XLVIT. Verbs with Two Subjects 127 " XLVIIL " There is " and "There are" 12'.) " XLIX. Syntax of Pronouns 131 " L. Syntax of Adverbs 137 " LI. Compound Sentences 139 " LII. Anal^^sis of Compound Sentences 142 ** LIII. Making Compound Sentences 1 43 " LIV. Complex Sentences 1 4(; *' LV. Analysis of Complex Sentences 149 *' LVI. Expanding and Contracting Sentences 150 Miscellaneous Exercises in Composition 154 SUPPLEMENT 169 LANGUAGE LESSONS. I. INTRODUCTORY. This lesson is not to bo committed to memory. It should bo read aloud in the class, each scholar reading one paragraph. 1. We have learned to speak the English language so as to understand what others say to us, and to make oth- ers understand what we say to them. True, we have not learned syntax and analysis, as the scholars in the first grade have ; but in real talk we are able to use common words very well. 2. We can not only speak our language, but we have made some progress in writing it. We have written let- ters and short compositions. All this knowledge we have gained by hearing others talk, by talking ourselves, and by studying the lessons in our Readers. 3. But our letters and compositions are not perfect. We make mistakes in spelling and in using capitals ; we often employ the wrong word, or we do not put the right words together in the right icay. We also often express ourselves badly in talking. 4. Yesterday Mary Smith said to Robert Adair, " What boys is the best scholars in your class ?" an.d Robert an- swered, " Me and Willie Brown are the best." [Teacher : Who can tell what is wrong in these sentences ?] 5. If Mary and Robert had known more about lan- guage, they would not have made these errors. So, if 1 2 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Katy Lc'O had kuown more about our mother-tongue, she would not have declared, as she did the other day, that " she did 7iot like grammar nohoxo^'' and that it was " the hatefullest study she ever se^n." 6. The most useful, as well as the most beautiful, knowl- edge that we can acquire in school is the knowledge of how to express ourselves, whether in conversation or on paper — how to say in correct English what we have to say, to begin with ; then how to say it so that the reader shall understand exactly our meaning ; then how to say it so as to give pleasure by the form in which we put what we have to say. 7. Nowadays we must all be writers. There are what we may call professional writers — that is, persons whose business it is to write; and these addreSs a public audi- ence, through books, magazines, and newspapers. Now it may not be our business to write ; yet we shall all have frequent occasion to handle the pen. A good part of our intercourse with others is necessarily carried on by writ- ing ; and even if we wrote only letters, we should still be practicing the art of writing. 8. It would be very unfortunate — would it not ? — for one to be tongue-tied, or to have an impediment in his speech. Well, in this writing age, it is equally unfortu- nate for one not to have a ready use of the pen. 9. it is not very difficult for a pupil to learn to speak and to write correctly and clearly. And if you who are beginning the study of this book will faithfully work out the exercises here given, you will find that you will be able to express yourselves well both with the tongue and with the pen. 10. The study that teaches us to use the English lan- guage correctly in speaking and in writing is called En- glish grammar. ON SENTENCES. n. THE SENTENCE. The teacher will dictate, and the pnpils yrill write on slates or on paper, the following story : Two young bears left their native woods. They came to a bee-hive well stored with honey. At this discovery the bears were greatly de- lighted. They hastily overturned the hive. They began to eat vora- ciously. The bees, however, were not to be deprived of the fruits of their labor with impunity. They flew about the bears. They stung them severely in the ears and eyes. The bears tried in vain to repel the attacks of their nimble foes. They were at last forced to retreat, maddened with pain and blinded by rage. But after a while their suf- ferings subsided. They had leisure to reflect upon their conduct, and resolved to profit by their sad experience. Pleasure is often bought with pain. 1. In the story that you have copied there are two things to be noticed — I. The piece is marked off into separate statements by a punctuation-mark, called the j^eriod, or full stop. II. The first word of each statement begins with a capital letter. 2. Direction.— Begin every statement with a capital letter, and end it with a period. Exchange papers, and see if this has hecn correctly done. 3. Each of these separate statements is called a se7i- tence. In the copied story, number the sentences 1, 2, 3, etc. What is the first sentence! The second! The third ! etc. 4. Defixitiox.— A sentence is a set of words making a complete statement. 5. All our talk consists of sentences. Whenever we say any thing we make a sentence. We can not say any thing without using a sentence. 4 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 6. A sentence is made up of words; but words thrown together at random will not be a sentence : they must say something before they can be a sentence. 7. A pupil was told to write a sentence on air. She wrote these words: "The air that w^e breathe." Now these words are not a sentence, for the reason that they do not by themselves make any complete state- ment. They might easily be worked into a sentence by saying "The air that we breathe is sweet," or "The air that we breathe is a fluid." 8. Is this a sentence ? Little drops of water, little grains of sand, Make the mighty ocean and the pleasant land. 9. Is this a sentence ? Full many a gem of purest ray serene . Here are some sets of words which are not sentences, because they do not make statements. Put in such words as will make them sentences. 1. In 1492 Columbus . 2. The life of a farmer is . 3. The earth, in 365i days . 4. A band of robbers . 5. The story of Robinson Crusoe , 6. When Washington had cut the cherry-tree . 7. The City of New York . 8. The Empire of China -. 9. The study of grammar . 10. was a great patriot. 11. gives milk. 12. is the largest city in the world. 13. tells us the time of day. Teacher's Note.— The lessons in the Reader may be turned to good account in imparting a Icnowledge of the nature of the sentence. It will also be found a valuable exercise to place the work of one or more pupils on the blackboard, and make it the basis of class-criticism. SUBJECT AND PREDICATE. III. SUBJECT AND PREDICATE. 1. In every sentence there are two important things to be noticed — I. That there is something stated, or said. > II. That there is something named about which the statement is made. Birds fly. Here the thing stated is denoted by the word " fly." The thing about which the statement is made is de- noted by the word " birds." Music soothes. Here the thing stated is denoted by the word "soothes;" the thing about which the statement is made is denoted by the word " music." Rivers flow to the sea. Here the thing stated \^ denoted by the words "flow to the sea ;" the thing about which the statement is made is denoted by the word " rivers." In the following sentences tell wno or what is talked aT)oat, and what is the thing STATED. 1. Columbus discovered America. 2. Leaves have their time to fall. 3. Iron is the most useful metal. 4. The lawyer hummed an old love-tune. 5. The squirrel eyes the browning chestnuts. 2. Definitions. — The name of the person or thing ahout which the statement is made is called the subject. The word or words used in making the statement are called the predicate. 3. Every sentence must contain a subject and a predi- cate, because every sentence must be a statement. 6 LANGUAGE LESSONS. N.B. — The question " Who (or tohat) is mentioyied f"* will always suggest -the subject as its answer. And ''^What is said of the subject f"^ will give the predi- cate. 4. In the sentence "Columbus discovered America," who is mentioned? Ans. Columbus. What is said of him? Ans. Discovered America. Hence in this sentence "Columbus" is the subject, and "discovered America" the predicate. 5. In the sentence "The squirrel eyes the browning chestnuts," what is the subject ? " The squirrel." The predicate ? "Eyes the browning chestnuts." Make sentences, with suitable pairs, of the following subjects and predicates. Each subject must be paired with the predicate that suits its meaning ; as, A dog worried a cat : r A dog, robin, crow, horse, baby. Subjects \ the boy, the girl, the jockey, the coachman, the I doctor, the teacher, the musician, taught the class, will play the fiddle, shall win the race, worried a cat, will sing a song, built Predicates ^ a nest, upset the carriage, cured the man, trundles a hoop, shall toss a ball, wan!s its rattle, broke the fence. Supply suitable subjects : 1. revolves around the sun in a year. 2. is the season of snow and ice. 3. are drawn over the snow in sledges, 4. suffered terribly at Valley Forge. 5. is called the father of his country. 6. sail across the Atlantic Ocean. V. wrote her exercise. iSnpply suitable predicates : 1. New York 2. Coal . SUBJECT AND PBEDICATEe 3. Sounds of music . 4. Vessels . 5. The source of the Nile . C. The children . Exercise 1. A. Write a sentence on each of the following words. Underline all the words in the subject, and doubly un- derline all the Avords in the predicate. Model. Smoke. The smoke curls up from the chimnev. 1. Smoke. 5. The Steam-engine. 2. Desk. 6. The Eagle. 3. Air. v. Money. 4. Book. 8. Girls. Exchange papers, and see If the subjects and predicates are correctly under- lined. Compose two or more sentences upon each of the fol- lowing subjects : . 1. Cotton. 2. Dog. 8. Patrick Henry. Let these sentences be written on the blackboard, and be made the basis of class-criticism. Correct according to the following directions : 1. Draw a line under each misspelled w^ord. 2. Draw a line through each small letter that should be a capital, or capital that should be small. 3. Mark a cross where a period is omitted. Teacher's Note.— The matter of subject and predicate should not be left until it is perfectly understood by every member of the class. Of course, at this stage no attempt is to be made to discriminate between grammatical and logical subject and predicate. It will be enough for the present if the pupil clearly understands that the subject consists of all the words naming the person or thing spoken about ; and the predi- cate, of all the words used in making the statement. LANGUAGE LESSONS. IV. A LESSON IN CRITICISING. 1. We are now to take a lesson in criticising sentences, which means pointing out their faults. 2. To show the pupil how this is done, we will take a number of examples from the last exercise as written by a class of young scholars. [See the subjects in Exercise 1, page 7.] Mf^ample 1. — The Dog. The dog runs fast. The dog got runed over by a cart. The dog got out of the pound. You see that this exercise is not well done. True, each sentence be- gins with a capital, and ends with a period. But the writer says "the dog got runed over. " There is no such word as runed. He meant that the dog was run over. Each sentence begins with the same words — "the dog :" this is not agreeable to the ear. Example 2.— The Dog. A dog is a quadruped with four legs some dogs are very wild and some are not wild some dogs do not like to be tied all day. Here the writer has three sentences, for there are three separate state- ments ; yet these are all run together without periods or capitals. Cor- recting the exercise with regard to these things, we have — A dog is a quadruped with four legs. Some dogs are very wild, and some are not wild. Some dogs do not like to be tied all day. This makes it better; but why need the pupil say "a quadruped with four legs?" Example 3. — The Dog. I have had some dogs that I have been very fond of. Once I had a big Newfoundland Dog. He would take LESSONS IN CRITICISING. 9 my Lunch to school. Now I have a little Dog that will fetch me the newspaper when I send him after it. This is much better. The pupil tells something he knows about. Still, there are some mistakes in the piece. The word "dog" is writ- ten twice with a capital where a small letter should be used, and the word "lunch" once. Example 4. — Cotton. Cotton grows on a bush the cotton is gathered by nigors mostly and packed in bails and sent away. There is no period linywhere but at the end, though the writer plainly uses two sentences. What words do you suppose he intends by "nig- ors " and "bails?" Would not the piece be better thus? "Cotton grows on a bush. It is usually picked by negroes. Then it is packed in bales and sent away." Example 5. — Cotton. Cotton is largely grown in our country, being raised in Mississippi, Texas, Louisiana, Alabama, and South Caro- lina. Last winter my mother was in Texas, and she brought home some cotton pods. I did not know what they were until she told me. Our Geography has a pict- ure of a cotton-field, with the negroes picking, and the cotton-press and the gin-house. Such a field must be a very interesting sight. I read in the newspaper a little while ago that the value of the cotton crop of 1870 was three hundred millions of dollars. This exercise, you see, is well done. The spelling, capitalizing, and punctuation are all correct. Then what is said is not silly. The facts stated are interesting and true. This piece was written by a school-girl twelve years old. It is not quite so fine writing as Daniel Webster's, but it is probably as good as Daniel Webster could have written at twelve years of age. Example 6. — Patrick Henry. Patrick Henry lectured for his country. Patrick Henry was a nobleman. He was honored by his Country. The periods are correctly put in, and each sentence begins with a cap- ital. In the first sentence, "country" is correctly written with a small 1* 10 LANGUAGE LESSONS. letter ; but in the third it is incorrectly written with a capital. The writer says "Patrick Henry was a "nobleman:" he means a noble man. What is the difference ? Remaek to the Pupils. — When you see what igno- rance it shows to make mistakes in spelling and capital- izing, and to omit the period at the end of a sentence, you should be very careful to avoid all such errors. And when you feel the superiority of a jjiece containing sensi- ble and interesting statements over one that is foolish or commonplace, you will surely try to do your very best. Exercise 2. The following sentences are printed exactly as they were written. They are on the subjects given in Exer- cise 1. You are to correct them with reference to — 1. Spelling. 2. Capitals. 3. The Period. 4. Any thing else that seems to need correction. 1. Some dogs are very nice some are very useful they are a good watch at night they keep all harm away from the house. 2. Dog is a very useful animal a round the house, a good dog is worth a lot of money. 3. The dog is very prety He's very savage He is very large. 4. Cotton is very use-full & callico is made from it which grows in Mississippi. 5. Thred is made of Cotton, Cotton cloth is made of cotton. Cotton growes in California. 6. New Orleans is the greatest cotton market in the world. Cotton is used for a great many difierent things we all Avear cotton. 7. The Eagle is the bird of pray. He bilds his nest in a lofty mount- ain. 8. Tlie eagle is a larg Bird. It is the emblem of the united States. A eagle flys high. 9. From the Steam Engine many people are killed and wounded it runs very fast, they run on rails. 10. Steam Engines are very useful thing they are a great deal better than Steam boats some people like the steamboat the best. 11. Pateric Henry was a great orator. Pateric Henry was an irish- man. Pateric Henry was born in Ireland. 12. Patrick Henry is a very Funny name. Patrick Henry is Dead, SUBJECT AND PEEDICATE AGAIN. 11 V. SUBJECT AND PREDICATE AGAIN. Birds fly. Fishes swim. Carthage fell. 1. Are the words " birds fly " a sentence ? Yes ; be- cause they make a statement, and have a subject and a predicate. What is the subject ? The predicate ? 2. Are these words a sentence ? " Fishes swim." Name the subject. The predicate. 3. " Carthage fell :" is this a sentence ? Why ? Give the subject. The predicate. 4. In each of these sentences the subject consists of but one word, and the predicate of but one word ; hence these are the very simplest kind of sentences, for each contains but two words. If a set of words did not con- tain a subject and a predicate, would these icords he a setitence f 5. In a sentence that contains but tioo words — the sub- ject and the predicate — the subject may be called the simple subject, and the predicate may be called the sim- ple predicate. G. The subject may consist of many words, and the predicate may consist of many words. 7. When the simple subject takes other words Avith it, we say that it is enlarged. So with the predicate. ILLUSTKATION. 1. Birds fly. This is a sentence,- with a simple subject, " birds," and a simple predi- cate, "fly." 12 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 2. Some birds fly swiftly. Here the subject is enlarged by the word "some," and tlie predicate by tlie word ' ' swiftly. " 3. Some VivdiS of prey ^Y very swiftly. Here the words "of prey" are added to the last subject, and "very" to the hist predicate. 4. Some birds of prey ^ having secured their victim, fly with it very swiftly to their nests. Here the subject and the predicate are enlarged by many additional >yords. 8. In the first form of tlie sentence, "birds" is the sub- ject, and " fly " is the predicate. In the fourth form, the subject is " some birds of prey, having secured their victim," and the predicate is "fly with it very swiftly to their nests." The first sentence is simple; the other sentences are enlarged. Subject. Predicate. 1. Birds fl}'. 2. Some birds fly swiftly. 3. Some birds of prey fly very swiftly. 4. Some birds of prey, having secured tlieir victim, fly with it very swiftly to their nests. In like manner, enlarge the following sentences till you make tliem as long as you can. Be careful to have only one subject and one predicate : 1. Boys study. 2. A horse ran. 9. The principal word in the subject of a sentence is a name-word, because it represents the thing named ; the principal word in the predicate is a statement-word, be- cause it represents the thing stated, or said. Name-w^ords are called nouns; statement-words are' called verbs. 10. There are thousands o^ nouns in our language, and also thousands of verbs. When we take all the words in our language, we find that we can assort them into a few great classes. Words are assorted into classes by finding out their use in sentences — what they do. SUBJECT AND PEEDICATE AGAIN. 13 We shall see that all English words may be grouped into eight classes, and these different sorts of words arc called in grammar ji^ar^s of speech. ISTow nouns and verbs are the two principal parts of speech, because with a noun and a verb we can make a sentence. The scholar, when he has learned about nouns and verbs, will have made a good beginning in grammar. Exercise 3. A. Write out the following sentences, drawing a single line under the simple subject, and a double line under the simple predicate. Model. — The elephant surpasses all other land animals in size. 1. The elephant surpasses all other land animals in size. 2. The cuckoo, builds no nest for herself. 3. Vast prairies stretch beyond the Mississippi. 4. Before our house a prattling river runs. 5. A herd of cattle grazed in a meadow. G. The timid bird saw the snake in the grass. 7. My father's fields produce corn. 8. Those pears may ripen on the wall. 9. Diogenes lived in a tub. B. Write a sentence on each of the following words. Draw a single line under the pr^?^c^}:)a? word in the sub- ject (noun), and a double line under the principal word in the predicate (verb). ^ 1. Face. 2. Crocodile. 3. Washino^ton. Exchange papers, and see— 1. Whether the spelling is correct. 2. Whether each sentence begins with a capital. 3. Whether each sentence ends with a period. 4. Whether there are any other improvements that yon can make. 14 LANGUAGE LESSONS. VI.— KINDS OP WORDS. 1. Nouns. — Whatever we can think of or say any thing about has a name, and a 7iame is a noun : We can speak of what we see, hear, taste, smell. or feel. a hat, thunder, sugar, a rose, pain. Wq can al so speak of Boston, Sierra Nevada, the ! Mississippi, a c%. a ^noimtain. a river. JosejDh, Harriet, Harry, a man, a woman, a hoy. We can also speak of virtue, goodness, wisdom, brav- ery, and many other things that we can neither see nor hear. Now all these names are nouns. 2. Verbs. — But we can not talk about a thing without using another kind of word called a verb, to express what we mean in regard to the thing named : A desk stands. Thunder roars. Chicago is a city. Temperance brings health. John beat James. Write the foUowing nouns in one column, and the verbs in another : 1. Rain falls. 2. Smoke rises. 3. John broke the window. 4. The Thames flows. 5. Paris is a city. 6. Lucy visited Thomas. 7. The sun shines. 8. The teacher gave a holiday. 9. Robert spins a top. 10. Mary played a game. 3. Adjectives. — A mere name is not always a sufficient- ly definite sign of the meaning of a noun. Other words, called adjectives, are sometimes joined to it to denote color, shape, size, kind, quantity, etc. : KINDS OF WORDS. 15 A blue tie. A blach dog. A white swan. A small letter. A capital letter. A round table. Kfine pear. A sweet apple. Twenty dollars. Underline tlie following a<^jectives : 1. The man stole a brown muiF. 2. A fine brown horse won the long race. 3. Many persons saw it. 4. Pleasant weather makes us cheerful. 5. Sweet sleep brings fairy dreams. 6. Three sunny days have followed two gloomy ones. 4. Adverbs. — A fuller meanins: is often criven to the verb, and also to the adjective, by the use of words called adverbs, to express time, place, manner, and de- gree : He called yesterday. Go quickly. He will be here to-day. She sang nicely, Richard was very angry. He was exceedingly sorry. Underline the following adverbs : 1. Try again. 2. Write carefully. 3. You will soon learn. 4. She behaves well. 5. It is very easy. 6. Step backward. 7. Nobody really tries to write carelessly. 5. Pronouns. — A certain kind of word may be used in- stead of a noun : namely, a pronoun. The principal pro- nouns are I— me. We— us, He— him, You, She— her, They— them. It, Underline the following pronouns : 1. I love a rose. 2. Do you? 3. It perfumes the garden. 4. He told John we would come. 5. Tliey brought us fruit. G. She asked them to let her go. 6. Prepositions. — Certain words are used to show the relation which one thing bears to another. Such words are called prepositions, because they are usually placed before nouns : He placed the boxes on the cart. You came after the time. She runs across the field. 16 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Underline the prepositions in the following: ], The swallows built a nest above the window. 2. The door of the house was shut. 3. We stayed in the garden till evening. 4. He sat for some time under a tree. 5. She came before breakfast. 6. The dew is on the grass. 7. Conjunctions. — We sometimes wish to speak of two different things at one time, or to make two different statements about a thing. It is then necessary to join them by means of a conjunction, such as and^ buty either, or, if. Underline the conjunctions in the following: 1. A cat and a dog played prettily on the floor. 2. The boy could write pretty well, but he could not read very nicely. 3. We shall im- prove ^f we study. 4. Either Charles or Edward must go to the farm. 6. John's uncle owns a horse and cart. 6. To err is human, but to forgive is divine. 8. Interjections. — Certain words may stand alone to express surprise, disgust, etc. Oh/ is John here? Ah/ I wish he had come before. These are called interjections. The written or printed sign of an interjection or exclamation is ! Exercise 4. Name the Jcinds of word^ in the following, thus : gate. Noun. 1 . A horse and a dog make good companions. 2. They cheer the weary traveler on a long journey. 3. Oh ! do you see the poor starving beggar ? 4. Give him a crust of bread from the pantry. 6. The sheep soon reached the river, but refused to cross. (J. She is far from the land where her young hero sleeps, And lovers around her are sighing ; But coldly she turns from their gaze, and weeps, . For her heart in his grave is lying. — Thomas Moore. Many girls and boys ran quickly through the open Adj. Noun Conj. Noun Verb Adv. Prep. Adj. Adj. NOUNS. 17 VIL— NOUNS. Teacher's Note,— The kind and the quantity of drill in nouns re- quired for young scholars will depend on their previous training. If no oral training has been given, the teacher sliould have the pupils name the nouns in their reading-lessons. 1. Definition. — Nouns are name-words. Examples. — Man^ hoy, sergeant, Charles, Explanation. — These are names oi persons. All names of persons are ?ioims. Examples. — Dor/, horse, coio, cat, antelo}^. Explanation. — These are names of animals. All names of animals are nouns. Examples. — Tow7i, street, city, church. Exjylanation. — These are names of places. All names of places are nouns. Examples. — Chair, pen, des7c,fire, beaiity, goodiiess. Explanation. — These are names of things. All names of things are nouns. Thus we see that nouns are name-words because they are the names of all persons, places, and objects. 2. There are two kinds of nouns : 1. Common nouns. 2. Proper nouns. 3. Definition. — A proper noun is the name of a person, place, or object; as John, 'Washington, France, New York. 4. Proper nouns always begin with capitals. 5. Definition. — A common noun is the name of a class of objects; as man, hoy, country, city. 18 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 6. It must not be thought that nouns are used only as subjects, and that we are to look for nouns only in the subjects of sentences. They may be in the predicates also. N.B. — ^In selecting nouns remember that nouns are names of things ; and bear in mind that by things is meant not merely lifeless things, and not even things that can be seen only, but all objects, actions, qualities, places, and persons. In tho following sentences, name the nouns. There are trro in each sentence. 1. The boys are in school. 2. The gardener cut down the tree. 3. The sun rises in the morning. 4. The minister preached a sermon. 6. Sometimes we see a ship, sometimes we ship a sea. In the following sentences, name the nonns, and tell which are proper and which common : 1. Washington w^on a battle at Trenton. 2. London is the largest city in the world. 3. In going from New York to San Francisco, we crossed the Rocky Mountains. 4. We are going a-fishing next Saturday. 5. California is a great state for wheat, wool, and wine. Exercise 5. A. Mention the names of things : 1. In the school-room. 3. In the street. 2. In the play-ground. 4. Name persons you know. 5. Places you have seen or heard of. Tell which of the nouns yon have just given arc common, and which proper. NOUNS.^ 19 B. Name the nowis, and tell vflieiher proper or common. 1. The bee is on the flower. 2. The bird was in the tree. 3. The cat will be in the kitchen. 4. The dog was in his kennel. 5. The horses are in the stable. 6. The bear roared in his den. 7. Where are the books ? 8. Henry ran up the mountain. 9. The goat butted the child into a ditch. 10. The oak bears acorns. 11. Jerusalem is in Palestine. 12. Paris is in France. 13. Shakspeare was a great poet. 14. Webster was a great orator. C. Let the teacher or the pupils read aloud the following story. Then let the pupils write from memory a little composition giving in their own language the substance of the stor}^. Underline each noun. THE FOX AND THE STORK. Once upon a time Mr. Fox invited Mr. Stork to dine with him. Mr. Fox, being a joker, had nothing for dinner except some soup which was poured out in a broad shallow platter. Of course Mr. Fox lapped up the soup with the greatest ease, but Mr. Stork only dipped the point of his long bill into the soup-plate out of politeness, for he could not get even a drop of the savory dish. Mr. Stork, who was a dry sort of a fellow, made no complaint, but a few days afterwards he returned the compliment by inviting Mr. Fox to take supper with him. The supper consisted of only one dish of meat, and that was brought on in a tall glass jar with a very narrow neck. Mr. Fox looked wistfully on while his host coolly poked his long bill into the jar and ate up all the meat. The mouth of Mr. Fox watered, and he licked his jaws impatiently, but he was too wise to complain, for he saw that Mr. Stork had only paid him off in his own coin. Exchange papers, and see— 1. Whether the spelling, capitalizing, etc., are correct. 2. Whether the nouns arc rightly underlined. 20 LANGUAGE LESSONS. VIII. -VERBS. 1. Definition.— Verbs are statement- words. 2. In sentences like these — Men laugh^ Fishes swim, Carthage /6^/, there is but one word in each of the predicates ; and as in every sentence the statement-word must be a verb, the words "laugh," "swim," and "fell" are verbs. 3. In sentences like these — The boy striJces the dog, The child sings a song, — there are several words in the predicate. Now in each of these sentences the verb is the particular word used in making the statement. In the first sentence the pred- icate is " strikes the dog," and the verb is " strikes ;" in the second sentence the predicate is " sings a song," and the verb is " sings." 4. Frequently there are many words in the predicate. Thus- Some birds of prey, having secured their victim, ^y very swiftly with it to their nests. Here the predicate consists of all the w^ords printed in italics; but the verb is the single word "fly." Name the rerbs in the following sentences : 1. After school the children went to town. 2. Home they brought her warrior dead. 3. The wild goats live among the rocks. 4. Some birds fly very swiftly. 5. The camel is tlie ship of the desert. VEEBS. 21 6. The little girl said, " We are seven." 7. The moon revolves around the earth. 8. Studious boys become learned men. Exercise 6. A. Add verhs telling what the following things do: 1. The boy . 4. The clock . 2. The girl . 5. Kings . 3. The birds . 6. The sun . B. Add verhs telling about the following things heing — {something) : 1. The apple sour. 4. Soldiers . 2. The grapes ripe. 5. Health . 3. James here yesterday. 6. London . V. The lion -. C. On Nouns and Verbs. 1. Name six things that run, . 2. " " " " grow, 3. " " " " ... hxmi. 4. Tell " " " horses do. 5. « " " " birds " G. " " " " dogs " D. Write a sentence on each of the following subjects- drawing one line under each noun^ and two lines under each verb. Model. — The polar bear lives in the arctic regions. 1. The polar bear. 2. The rainbow. 3. My cousin. Exchange papers, and correct irith reference to— 1. Spelling. 2. Capitals. 3. The period. 4. Whether the nouns and verbs are correctly underscored. 22 LANGUAGE LESSONS. IX. LESSON ON NUMBER. The river flows. The rivers flow. 1. When we compare these two sentences, we see that the noun in the first sentence is "river;" in the second, it is " rivers." 2. The word " river " gives the idea of 07ie of the things called rivers ; but when we say " rivers," we get an idea of more than one. 3. Definition.— Number is that form of a noun which marks whether we are speaking of one thing or of more than one. 4. There are two numbers of nouns — the singular num- ber, which denotes one object, and the ^:)?i«'a^ number, which denotes more than one object. 5. Rule. — Most nouns form their plural by adding s to the singular; as star, stars y neighbor, neighbors. Write tlie plural of the following nouns : 1. Plant. 5. Reaper. 9. Garden. 2. Rainbow. 6. Serpent. 10. Wheelbarrow. 3. Wall. V. Knell. 11. Water. 4. Danger. 8. Chestnut. 12. Apple. Note. — Many nouns do not form their plural by adding s^to the singular; but, for the present, remember that ninety-nine nouns out of every one hundred form their plural in this way. 6. Now let us take the verbs in the two sentences given above. We say, " The river flows," and W^e say, "The rivers flow." 7. We observe that with the singular, " river," the LESSON ON NUMBER. 23 verb ends in s — " flows y" while with the plural form, " rivers," the verb has not the s. 8. It is not correct to say, " The river ^oto." Neither is it correct to say, "The rivers ^oz^s." It is not correct, because this is not the way well-educated people speak English. 9. Rule. — When a verb denoting present time is joined with a noun subject in the singular number, the verb gen- erally ends in s; but when joined with a noun subject in the plural number, the verb generally omits the s. N.B. — In examples under this rule, it is well to re- member that the rule for adding s to verbs is just tho reverse of the rule for adding it to nouns ; that is, s is the ending of a plural noun and of a singular verb. 10. The most important principle in the English lan- guage is that the verb follows the number of its noun subject ; that is — If the noun is singular, the verb must be singular. If the noun is plural, the verb must be plural. 11. This is expressed in the following Rule of Agreement.— A verb must agree with its subject in number. The horse works. Here the verb " works " agrees in number with its sub- ject "horse." "Works" is singular because " horse " is singular. The horses work. Here the verb "work" agrees in number with " horses." " Work " is plural because " horses " is plural. Are the following sentences good English 2 1. Some boys writes carefully, 2. The splendor /aZ^ on castle walls. 3. The tops of the masts appears above the horizon. 4. The houses needs painting. 24 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Write the following sentence : The brave soldier falls in battle. Now write the sentence so as to make it say that more than one brave soldier falls in battle. Write this sentence : The stars begin to twinkle. Change it so as to make it speak of but one star. Exercise 7. A. In the following sentences, change the plural svhjects to singular^ and their plural verbs to singular. Model. — The gate of the palace opens. 1 . The gates of the palace open. 2. The thunders bellow over the waste of waters. 3. The schools re-open in September. 4. The greatest plateaus seem to be in Asia. 5. Little boys drive fat cows. G. Great designs often fail of accomplishment. 7. Persons become used to hardships and dangers. B. In the following sentences, change the singular subjects to p)luraly and make their verbs agree with them, 1 . The industrious boy works hard. 2. But, hush I hark ! a deep sound strikes like a rising knell. 3. A dog knows the master. 4. The squirrel eyes the chestnuts browning. 5. The flower of the tea-plant resembles wild roses. 6. The blackbird sings earlier than any of the other songsters. 7. The bee provides against want by making plenty of honey in summer. 8. The apple ripens in the month of August. Exchange papers for correction. IREEGULAR NUMBERS. 25 X. IRREGULAR NUMBERS. 1. We have learned the regular way of forming the plural of nouns. Now we must learn about those nouns that do not form their plural in the regular way. 2. First let us see the most irregular of all the nouns. Singular. Plural. Ox. Oxen. Child. Children. Man. Men. Woman. Women. Foot. Feet. Goose. Geese. Mouse. Mice. ' Tooth. Teeth. Sheep. Sheep. Deer. Deer. Penny. Pence. Note.— These are old English nouns, and were used before it was the settled custom to form the plural of nouns by adding s to the singular. You must learn these words, if you do not already know them, so that you may be able to spell their plurals with perfect ease and accuracy. 3. We have seen that the singular of verbs of present time generally ends in 5, and that it differs from the plu- ral only in having the s. Now, just as there are irregu- lar plurals of noiins^ so there are a few irregular plurals o^ verbs. Thus — The plural of ^s is are. V " " " y^cts is were. " " " has is have. 2 26 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 4. As far as regards number in verbs, these are almost the only very irregular forms. No doubt you know then-^ already ; but you must be very careful in every case to use the correct form of these words — that is, the form that will make the verb agree with its subject in num- ber. Example. — The sentence "The children has gone to school" is incorrect, because the verb "has" does not agree in number with its subject, " children," since " chil- dren" is plural, while " has" is singular. Exercise 8. A. 1. Write a sentence introducing vian in the plural. 2. Write a sentence introducing mice in the singular. 3. Write a sentence introducing child in the plural. 4. Write a sentence introducing penny in the plural. 5. Write a sentence introducingyeef in the singular. 6. Write a sentence introducing ox in the plural. 7. Write a sentence introducing sheep in the singular. 8. Write a sentence introducing sheep in the plural. 9. Write a sentence introducing teeth in the singular. 10. Write a sentence introducing woman in the plural. 11. Write a sentence introducing ^eese in the singular. 12. Write a sentence introducing jyence in the singular. B. Write these sentences so as to make each statement in the singular number . Model. — Dutiful children obey their parents. Chancped — A dutiful child obeys its parents. 1. Dutiful children obey their parents. 2. Men are mortal. 3. Sheep have valuable wool on their backs. 4. The oxen tread out the corn. 5. Little women sometimes have great minds. 6. These deer roam wild over the mountains. . 7. The schools are conducted very well. lEKEGULAR NUMBEES. 27 c. Write these sentences so as to make each statement in the plural nwriber. Model. — My boy's tooth is decayed by eating sweet- meats. Changed— 'My boy's teeth are decayed by eat- 1 . My boy's tooth is decayed by eating sweetmeats. 2. A goose by cackling is said to have saved Rome. 3. The mouse has been nibbling at the cheese. 4. The ox browses in the green meadow. 5. The sheep furnishes us with an important article used in making clothing. 6. A man of words and not of deeds Is like a garden full of weeds. 7. An honest man is the noblest work of God. 8. The child likes to play. 9. The woman washes clothes on the beach. iO. A deer is a beautiful animal. 11. The child is fother of the man. 12. The ox was drawing the team. D. The following mistakes were made by pupils in writ- ing some of the sentences in C. Correct them. 1. Gees by cackling are said to have saved Rome. 2. Geece by cackling have said to have saved Rome. 3. The geese by cackling is said to have saved Rome. 4. The oxen brows in the gi-een meadow. 6. Oxen browes in the green meadow. 6. Honest men is the noblest work of God. 7. Men of words and not of deads Are like a garden full of weads. 8. Men of words and not of deeds Is like gardens full of weeds. 9. These deer roams wild over the mountains. 10. The mice has been nibbling at the chees. 11. Sheep furnishes us with an important article of clothing. 12. My boys' tooth is decayed by eating sweetmeats. 28 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XL IRREGULAR SINGULARS AND PLURALS. 1. In this lesson will be shown other irregularities in the 7iumher of nouns and of verbs. 2. Ending in Y. — In adding s to a noun or to a verb ending in y, preceded by a consonant, the y must first be changed for ie, k Note.— Remember that the s is added to the singular of a noun to make it plural^ and to the plural of a verb to make it singular. ILLUSTEATION. Noun: singular — beauty; plural — beauties. Verb : plural — beautify ; singular — beautifies. 3. But if the y is preceded by a vowel, the s is added without any change. ILLUSTEATION. Noun : singular — valley ; plural — valleys. Verb : plural — survey ; singular — surveys. 4. Ending in S hakd. — When a noun or a verb ends in 5, sA, ch (hard), jk, or s, es must be added. ILLUSTRATIONS. - —NOUNS. Singular. Plural. Glass. Glass-es. Bush. Bush-es. Church. Church-cs. Fox. Fox-es. ILLUSTEATIONS.- — VEEBS. Plural, Singular. Pass. Pass-es. Rush. Rush-es. Lunch. Lunch-es. Box. Box-es. IRREGULAR SINGULARS AND PLURALS. 29 Note.— Let the tcaelicr show vivd voce that it is absolutely neces- sary the connecting vowel e should be inserted in such cases, as other- wise the s sound could not be heard when added. We can not pro- nounce glass-fs ; church+s ; rush+s ; etc. 5. Ending in O. — Some nouns and verbs ending in o preceded by a consonant take e before adding s. ILLUSTRATION. — NOUNS. Singular. Plural. Cargo. ' Cargo-es. Negro. Negro-es. Note. — A few nouns in o, as grotto, etc., take either s or es for the phu-al. ILLUSTRATION. — VERBS. Plural. Singular. Do. Does. Go. Goes. Note.— Z>oe5 and goe^ are almost the only instances of the kind among verbs. 6. Ending in the F Sound. — Most nouns ending in / or/e form their plural by changing the / or fe into ve and addinc: s. ILLUSTRATIONS. Singular. Plural. Leaf. Leaves. Wife. Wives. Thief. Thieves. Exercise 9. Write ihQ plurals of the following nouns : 1. Lady. 2. Baby. 3. Daisy. 4. Cherry. 5. Ferry. 6. Story. 7. Army. 8. Party. 9. Penny. 10. Navy. 11. Ivy. 12. Pony. 13. Valle}'. 14. Money. 15. Turkey. IG. Donkey. 17. Chimney. 18. Journey. 19. Pulley. 20. Jockey. 21. Monkey. 22. Survey. 30 LANGUAGE LESSONS. B. Write the plurals of the following nouns : 1. Half. 2. Calf. 3. Thief. 4. Leaf. 5. Eoof. 6. Princess. 7. Wharf. 8. Wife. 9. Knife. 10. Life. 11. Tax. 12. Patriarch. 13. Bush. 14. Skirmish. 15. Pinch. 16. Monarch. 17. Chorus. 18. Moss. 19. Hero. 20. Tyro. 21. Motto. C. Write the singulars of the following verbs : 1. Try. 2. Pity. 3. Spy. 4. Bully. 5. Glory. 6. Study. 7. Eeply. 8. Carry. 9. Copy. 10. Fancy. 11. Survey. 12. Betray. 13. Array. 14. Pay. 15. Fife. IG. fax. 17. Push. 18. Wish. D. 1. Write a sentence throwing into the plural form the statement that " The valley rejoices." 2. Write in the singular form this sentence: *' Philosophers survey mankind from China to Peru." 3. "The cargo has arrived :" write a sentence stating that more than one has arrived. 4. Write in the singular form the statement: "Good wives wish to please their husbands." 5. Write in the plural form the statement : " A man tries to be rich. " 6. "Monarchs tax their subjects :" write this in the singular form. 7. Write in the singular form : "Monkeys flourish in Africa." . 8. Write a sentence with the noun "journey " in the plural; another with the verb "journey" in the singular. 9. A sentence with the noun "dress" in the singular; another with the verb " dress " in the plural. 10. A sentence containing "box " as a noun, and as a verb. E. Tell whether the w^ords in italics are nouns or verbs ; tell also the number. 1. I do not care a rush. 2. The armies rush on to battle. 3. Fifty per cent, is a heavy tax. 4. You tax my patience. 5. Carpenters roof houses. 6. Cats make music on the roof. 7. We must take a survey of this subject. 8. We must survey it. 9. Sometimes we see a shij). 10. Sometimes we ship a sea. A LETTER CRITICISING AN EXERCISE. 31 XII. A LETTER CRITICISING AN EXERCISE. Teacheb's Note.— In the plan of this book, it is an essential feature that pupils should become the critics of one another's performances. Fa- cility and correctness of expression can be acquired only by frequent and continuous practice, and exercises can be made frequent only when the teacher is relieved from the task of correcting masses of papers. Now one of the best ways of doing this work is for the pupil to make his crit- icism in the form of a letter addressed to the teacher. It is only by re- iterated practice that boys and girls attain correctness in the arrangement of the parts of a letter— in the dating, address, paragraphing, etc. Crit- icisms made in letter form will give the necessary drill, and as the schol- ars will always have some definite subject to write upon, the task will be done with pleasure and alacrity. The criticism need not be required to go beyond what the pupil has already learned in this book. We will now write a criticism in the form of a letter addressed to the teacher. The following model will show how this should be done. The Exercise. The sheep is a verry useful animal if it were not for the sheep we should have no close. Some farmers has them and get there wool. John Smith. The Letter of Criticism. Schoolville, Connecticut, May 1, 1803. Dear Sir : I have to make the following report on John Smith's composition. There are meant to be three sentences in this composition ; but it has only two periods. There should be a period after the word "animal," which ends the first sentence. In spelling, I find three errors. " Very" is spelled verry ; " clothes " is spelled close ; and " their " is spelled there. The last sentence contains a blunder in the use of the verb. The writer says "some farmers has;" but the verb should be have, accord- ing to the rule, "Verbs agree with their subjects in number." Very truly yours, Gould Brown. To Mr. Richard Cherrible. 32 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Another Model.— The Exercise. The oxen of the farmer plows his field. Oxen eat grass. I seen a drove of oxen the other day. Mary Jones. The Letter. Miss Florence Nightingale, — My dear Teacher : I do not find any mistakes in spelling in Mary Jones's composition on "The Ox." Each sentence ends with a period. But in the first sentence Miss Jones says, "oxen plows." This should be plow, according to the text-book, which says that when the subject is plural the verb should have no s. I think the expression "I seen" is wrong. I do not know why it is wrong ; but I should say "I saio." Yours respectfully, Anne Hathaway. POINTS IN THE ARRANGEMENT OF A LETTER. The arrangement of the parts of a letter is important. The following points are, therefore, to be attended to : I. The place where it is written, and the date. The day, month, and year should be given in full. II. The form of address: as Sir, Dear Sir, My dear Teacher, Dear Madam, according to circumstances. The name of the person addressed may either precede the form of address, as in Model 2, or it may come at the close (left-hand side), as in Model 1. III. The narrative J or letter proper. Be careful to begin every new subject with a new paragraph. IV. The subscription : as Yours truly, Yours faith- fully. Your affectionate pupil, and then the name of the writer. A LETTER CRITICISING AN EXERCISE. 38 Exercise 10. Let the teacher, or the pupils themselves, read aloud the following piece, after which the pupils will write it in their own language : ANECDOTE OF WASHINGTON. In 1755, Washington, then a young man, was stationed with his regi-"fv ment at Alexandria. At this time an election for public officers took place, and the contest between the candidates became close and exciting. A dispute took place between Mr. Payne and Washington, in which the latter became excited, and said something which gave Mr. Payne so much offense that he knocked Washington down. Instead of flying into a passion, and sending Payne a challenge to fight a duel, as was ex- pected, Washington, upon mature reflection, finding he had been the ag- gressor, resolved to ask pardon of Mr. Payne on the morrow. Accord- ingly he met Mr. Payne the next day, and extended his hand in a friend- ly manner. " Mr. Payne," said he, " to err is nature ; to rectify error is glory. I find I was wrong yesterday, but I wish to be right to-day. You had some satisfaction yesterday, and if you think that was sufficient, here is my hand." It is hardly necessary to state that ever afterwards they were good friends. After the abstract is made, the scholars will exchange papers, and each pupil will address a letter to the teacher pointing out the errors. Notice particularly the following points : 1. Spelling. 2. Capitals. 3. The period. 4. The plu- rals of nouns. 5. The forms of the verbs. 6. Other im- provements. Teacher's Note. — The teacher will do well at the outset to be par- ticular as to the manner in which these letters are written. Let her see that the mechanical execution is perfect. When scholars are well trained in this, and emulation in criticism is excited, the teacher will be saved a great amount of trouble, as the pupils will themselves do all the work of looking over exercises. But to be sure of this most de- sirable result, the teacher must be willing to take pains at the outset and see that the pupils are well grounded in the preliminaries. When THE EXERCISES ARE CORRECTED, THEY SHOULD BE REWRITTEN BY THE PUPILS. 2* 34 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XIII. ADJECTIVES. 1. Thus far, the only kind of sentence that we really understanti is this : Flowers bloom. Water ripples. Art refines. That is, we understand only about the simple subject, which is generally a noun, and about the simple predicate, which is a verb. 2. But it is often necessary to describe or limit the noun in some way, and also to tell something about the statement made by the verb. 3. Thus, we may wish to say — Beautiful flowers bloom. And we may wish to say — Beautiful flowers bloom early, 4. Whenever we employ a word to describe or limit a noun, we are using what is called an acljective. " Beau- tiful" is an adjective. Whenever we employ a word to describe or limit the meaning of a verb, we are using what is called an adverb. " Early " is an adverb. 5. Write these sentences : 1. A big fire burns brightly. 2. Three carts were going along the road. 3. Bring me that book. The word "big" is added to "fire" to tell what sort of fire it is ; the word " three " is added to " carts " to tell how many carts there were ; and the word " that " is added to " book " to tell which book is meant. 6. Definition. — Adjectives describe or limit nouns. ADJECTIVES. 35 Color Size Kind. 7. Some adjectives show the quality of a thing : ( A lohite horse. A hlack dog. A red book, (. A yellow flower. A purple dress. A crimson sash. ^ A large house. A small cottage. A broad road. ( A narrow path. A low chimney. A tall chimney. ("A soft bed. A pleasant bed. A hard rock. Soft sand. • • ■< A. fierce tiger, A gentle lamb. Fine weather. C A sweet apple. A strong hand. A brave heart. 8. Some adjectives show the quantity of a thing : t. Fixed. One ox. Tiva^oxen. Three cows. The frst fox. The third horse. The fourth dog. 2. Uncertai?!. Some persons. Other persons. All children. Many children. Several women. Few girls. Most boys. No persons. Fach individual. Every traveler. Either man. Neither woman. Number. Mass or Bulk. Some tea. Much sugar. Little milk. Any bread. 9. One kind of adjective serves merely to point out the thing named : This horse (the nearer one pointed at). That horse (i\vQ farther one pointed at). The horse (a particular one to which attention is called). A horse (one of that kind of animal). 10. The words a (or an) and the have a particular name of their own. They are called the articles. \\. A is 'called the indefinite article; the, the definite article. 12. An is used before words beginning with vow- el sounds; a before words beginning with consonant sounds. Examples. — A man; a house; a year; a wonder; a use. An art; an end; an heir; an urn. Note. — a, e, j, o, u are the vowels, w and y are consonants when they begin a syllable ; otherwise, vowels. 36 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 13. Adjectives formed from proper nouns are called proper adjectives. They are illustrated iu the following sentences : 1. The Russian Government is a despotism. 2. The Italian people are fond of music. 3. The American Constitution is a monument of po- litical wisdom. Nouns. Adjectives. Russia. Russian. Italy. Italian. America. American. 14. As proper nouns are always written wdth capitals, so adjectives derived from them are also written with capitals. state the mistakes in the folloiring: The russian government ; The Italian people. 15. The adjective formed from the proper noun Switz- erland is Swiss ; from the proper noun China is Chinese. Write the adjectives formed from the follOTring proper nouns : 1. Spain. 5. Germany. 9. Turkey. 2. Scotland. ,. 6. Ireland. 10. California. 3. Japan. 7. Africa. 11. Paris. 4. Cuba. 8. Australia. 12. Baltimore. Exercise 11. A. Select the Adjectives : 1. The dashing waves beat on a rock-bound coast. 2. A large garden is not always a profitable garden. 3. A handsome flower is not always a sweet-smelling flower. 4. Gold, wheat, and wine are three great California productions. 5. Some men murmur when their sky is clear. 6. There is a special providence in the fall of a sparrow. ADJECTIVES. 37 7. In the IGth century the Spanish nation was one of the leading European powers. 8. All horned animals ars ruminant. 9. The cutting of the Dutch dikes let in the waters and drove out the Spanish invaders. Write a sentence on each of the following subjects, in- troducing a noun, an adjective, and a verb. Number the nouns 1 ; the verbs 2 ; and the adjectives 3. Model. — Trees : Immense trees grow in California. 1. Trees. 2. The rainbow. 3. Army. 4. Railroad. Exchange papers for correction. C. Write sentences introducing the adjective forms of the following proper nouns. Underline the adjectives. Model. — Switzerland: Swiss scenery is celebrated for its beauty. 1. Sweden. 2. Holland. 3. Peru. 4. Japan. In writing the last exercise the following mistakes were made by pupils in. a young class. Correct them, 1 . The Sweedish people all live near each other. 2. The man was a Sweedener. 3. Some holland people are coming here. 4. A Holand merchant has just arrived. 5. The peru girls have just landed. G. That is a Peruan family. 7. The Puni people are dark complected. 8. He is a Japanees actor. 9. The Japan customs are like the Chinese. 10. She does not like the Japenese ladies. SB LANGUAGE LESSONS. The teacher or the pupils will read over the following piece, and then the pupils will make an abstract of it from memory. Underline all the adjectives. Exchange papers, and correct with reference to— 1. Spelling. 2. Capitals. 3. Form of Verbs. 4. Whether the adjectives are correctly underlined. FIVE PEAS IN ONE TOD.— lAdapted from Hans Andersen.'] Once there were five peas growing in one pod. The peas were green, the pod was green, the vine was green, the leaves were green, and they thought all the world was green. The warm sun shone on the vine — the summer rain watered it. The shell grew larger, and the peas grew bigger and bigger, *' Are we to lie here cooped up forever?" asked one. "I am tired of it," said another. *' I fear we shall become hard," said a third. *' I want to see what there is outside," said a fourth ; while the fifth, a veiy little pea, cried because he could not get out. At length the vine turned yellow, the pod turned yellow, and the peas turned yellow. *' All the world is turning yellow," said the peas, with one voice. Then there came an earthquake, the pod burst open with a crack, and all the five peas rolled out into the yellow sunshine. A little boy clutched them, and said they were fine peas for his pea-shooter. He put the big- gest one into his gun, and shot it out. " Catch me if you can," said the big pea. " I shall fly straight into the sun," said the next one. "I shall travel farthest," said the third pea. "Let me alone," said the fourth. "What is to be will be," said the little pea, as he shot up and lodged in an empty flower-pot in the window of a room where lay a poor sick girl. Pretty soon the little pea sprouted, and began to grow up into a beau- tiful vine, " Dear mother, I think I shall get well," said the little girl one day ; "for my pea is growing famously." "God grant it," said the mother; and she took a stick and tied a string to it, so that the green vine might have something to cling to. After many days there stood a beautiful pink pea-blossom smiling in the warm sunshine. The little girl kissed it, and said, " Now I am sure I am going to get well." COMPARISON OP ADJECTIVES. XIV. COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES. A tall man. A taller man. The tallest man. 1. Here are three adjectives—" tall," " taller," " tall- est." You see that " taller " and " tallest " have a kind of relationship to "tall." You see that "taller" is just tall+er, and "tallest" is tall+est. 2. When we hear a taller man spoken of, we get the idea that, comparing him with some other man, the taller has more of the quality that we call tallness. Also that the tallest man has the most of this quality. In gram- mar, such a change of adjectives as from tall to taller and tallest is called comparison. 3. Definition.— Comparison is a variation of the form of an adjective to express the quality in different degrees. Taller is called the comparative degree. Tallest is called the superlative (or very highest) de- gree. Tall — the simple form of the adjective — is called the positive degree. 4. Rule. — The comparative degree is formed by adding ER to the positive. 5. Rule. — The superlative degree is formed by adding EST to the positive. Positive, Comparative. Superlative. Sharp. " Sharper. Sharpest. Grand. ' Grander. Grandest. Note.— It is important to note that the addition of cr and esttoma- times causes the root-word to undergo certain changes of form. 40 LANGUAGE LESSONS. ILLUSTKATIONS. Blue-}-er = not hlueer^ but bluer. Red-f-er = not reder^ but redder. Happy+er =:not happy er^ but happier. Rules eor Spelling Adjectives. — I. When an ad- jective ends in e^ the e is dropped before adding er or est. II. When an adjective ends in a single consonant preceded by a single vowel, that single consonant is doubled before er and est. Red + er = redder ; but sweet + er = siceeter^ because the t is preceded by two vowels. III. When an adjective ends in y preceded by a con- sonant, the y is changed to i before adding er or est. Happy -f er = happier; but gray + er = grayer, because the y is not preceded by a consonant. Pupils trill write out the following comparatires and snperlatiTes : 1. Nice + er or est. 2. Pretty+er or est. 3. Hot + er or est. 4. ISTeat + er or est. 5. Tame + er or est. 6. When adding er or est would make a word too long to be pleasant to the ear, the comparative is formed by putting 7nore before the positive, and the superlative by putting most before the positive ; as beautiful, more beautifid, most beautiful. Form the comparative and superlative of— 1. Doleful. 2. Generous. 3. Terrible. 7. There are some old English adjectives whose com- paratives and superlatives are not formed in the ordinary way. COMPARISON OP ADJECTIVES. 41 Positive. Comparative. Superlative. Bad Worse Worst. Good Better Best. Little Less Least. Many More Most. Much More Most. Exercise 12. A. Select the adjectives^ and tell the degree of compar- ison : 1. The best exercise. 2. A prudent man. 3. Most excellent ad- vice. 4. A bigger basket. 5. The strongest ox. 6. The most learned of men. 7. A very elegant dress. 8. A useful invention. 9. A mag- nificent Italian sunrise. 10. The prettiest girl. B. Make sentences containing these adjectives : 1. Brilliant. 2. Skillful. 3. Wooden. 4. Interesting. 5. More devoted. 6. Imperfect. 7. Zealous. 8. Most pleasant. 9. Pleas- anter. 10. Worst. Exchange papers, and yrrlte letters of criticism. C. 1. Write a sentence stating that John possesses a greater degree of wisdom than Alexander, expressing the italicized words by one adjec- tive. Model. — John is wiser than Alexander. 2. Write a sentence stating that sugar possesses the greatest degree of sweetness of all substances. [One adjective for italicized words.l^ 3. Write a sentence stating that contentment has more of the quality of goodness than wealth. [One adjective for italicized words.'] 4. Write a sentence stating that Bismarck has the greatest ability of all the statesmen now living. 5. What is the mountain that has the greatest degree of loftiness in the world ? [Give the answer in a sentence containing the adjective in the superlative degree.] C. Write a sentence stating that the Mississippi has greater length than the Amazon. [One adjective for italicized word.] 42 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XV. SENTENCES WITH ADJECTIVES. 1. A noun may have one adjective to describe it, or it may have many adjectives. 1. Pure water is the best. 2. JPid'e, clear water is the best. 3. Pure, clear, spar/ding water is the best. 1. The Mississippi is longer than the Connecticut. 2. The Mississippi is longer and wider than the Con- necticut. 3. The Mississippi is longer, wider, and grander than the Connecticut. 1. Bacon was the brightest of mankind. 2. Bacon was the brightest and loisest of mankind. 3. Bacon was the brightest, wisest, and meanest of mankind. 2. Punctuation. — In a series of adjectives belonging to the same noun, a comma is placed after each adjective except the last ; but when two adjectives are joined by and, or or nor, or either or neither, the comma is omitted. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. "Pure, clear water is the best" — one comma to separate the two adjectives. 2. " The Mississippi is longer and wider than the Con- necticut " — two adjectives linked by " and," hence not separated by a comma. 3. " Pure, clear, sparkling water is the best " — two commas to separate the three adjectives. 4. " The Mississippi is longer, wider, and grander than the Connecticut" — two commas used to separate the three adjectives. SENTENCES WITH ADJECTIVES. 43 3. The sentence "Bacon was the brightest, wisest, meanest of man- kind" may be broken up into the following state- ments : 1. Bacon was the brightest of mankind. 2. Bacon was the wisest of mankind. 3. Bacon was the meanest of mankind. 4. In like manner, a number of separate statements may be combined into one simple sentence by taking out the adjective part from each. ILLUSTRATION. 1. In the morning a sailor came on board. 2. He was a fat sailor. 3. He was a jolly sailor. 4. He was a red-nosed sailor. Combined : In the morning a fat, jolly, red-nosed sailor came on board. Exercise 13. A. Comhine each set into one simple sentence by taking out the adjective part from each statement, as in the model above: 1. One day my mother gave me an orange. 2. It was a very large orange. 3. It was a round orange. 4. It was a red orange. 5. It was a sweet orange. 1. Last Christmas my father gave me a dress. 2. It was a new dress. 3. It was a silk dress. 4. It was a costly dress. 5. Its color was blue, , 6. It was a beautiful dress. 44 LATS^GUAGE LESSONS. 1. I once had a friend. 2. She was a true friend. 3. She was a generous friend. 4. She was a noble-hearted friend. 5. She was a loving friend. 1 . James Webster lost some marbles. 2. They were small marbles. 3. They were round marbles. 4. They were white marbles. 5. They were polished marbles. 1. A boy ran away from school yesterday. 2. He was a cross boy. 3. He was a quarrelsome boy. 4. He was a lazy boy. 1. The speaker had a voice. 2. It was a shrill voice. ' . 3. It was a thin voice. 4. It was a piping voice. 5. It was a disagreeable voice. 1 . The Himalayas extend across Asia. 2. The Himalayas are lofty. 3. The Himalayas are majestic. 4. The Himalayas are snow-capped. Exchange papers for correction. Attend particularly to the punctuation of the acyectives. B. Punctuate the adjectives in the following passages : 1. The sailor had a large strong hard and sunburned hand. 2. The garden was filled with rare costly beautiful sweet-scented flowers. 3. Hattie had a short sensible well-written well-spelled and well- punctuated composition. 4. The Condor is the largest strongest swiftest and most tireless of birds of prey. 5. The lofty majestic snow-capped Himalayas extend across Asia from east to west. PREDICATE ADJECTIVES. 45 XVI. PREDICATE ADJECTIVES. 1. The adjectives that we have thus far taken notice of have been adjectives that have preceded the nouns they described. Thus — 1. Beautiful flowers bloom. 2. The blue sky shines above us. 2. Adjectives belong to nouns, but they do not always precede the nouns that they belong to. ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. The flowers are beautiful. 2. The sky is blue. " Beautiful " and " blue " are just as much adjectives in these sentences as they are in the first sentences, and they belong to exactly the same nouns. In both cases " beau- tiful" describes "flowers," and "blue" describes "sky." But in the last sentences they are in the predicate. 3. An adjective always either accompanies the noun it describes, or else it is in the predicate after the verb be. In the latter case the noun it describes is the subject of the sentence. Thus, in the sentence " The flowers are beautiful," the subject is "flowers," and it is described by the adjective "beautiful." Such an adjective is called a predicate adjective. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. In summer the days are lo7ig. Here " long " is the predicate adjective, and limits " days." 2. Washington was brave, prudent, and xoise. " Brave," " prudent," and " wise," are predicate adjectives linoiit- ing "Washington." 4. Predicate adjectives are punctuated in the same way as adjectives that precede nouns. 46 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Exercise 14., A. 1. Make a sentence telling three qualities of the ocean— expressing the qualities hj predicate adjectives. Model. — The ocean is deep, dark, and stormy. 2. Make a sentence telling two qualities of glass. 3. Tell what Franklin was by means of two predicate adjectives. 4. Describe trees by using three predicate adjectives. 5. Make a sentence mentioning three qualities of the camel. 6. Describe our country by means of two predicate adjectives. 7. Describe the Himalayas by means of three predicate adjectives. 8. Write a sentence saying four things about our dog [^Predi- cate adjectives.^ 9. Napoleon was [Two predicate adjectives.] 10. Washington was [Three predicate adjectives.'] Exchange papers, and irrite letters of criticism. B. Let the following piece be read aloud, and then an ab- stract of it be written by the pupils. TJnderline the ad- jectives. SILK. We get silk from a caterpillar called the silk-worm. This little creat- ure is green in color, and feeds on the leaves of the mulberry-tree. It is hatched from an egg about the size of a mustard-seed, and changes its skin four times before it reaches its full size. When full-grown it leaves off eating, and covers itself over with a pretty silken case, inside of which the little spinner goes to sleep for some time. When its sleep is over it makes a hole in its case, and comes out in the shape of a small butterfly, which lays a number of eggs and then dies. It is from the case or ball spun by the silk-worm that all our silk is made. The balls, or cocoons, as they are called, are thrown into warm water, to loosen the gum with which the silk-worm glues the threads together. Then four or five of the threads are fastened to a reel and wound. In this state it is called raw silk; and it is next sent to the silk-mill, to be prepared for the weaver. The silk-worm is now raised in this country. The best silk comes from China, where silk-worms were reared and silk -was woven into cloth hundreds of years ago. POSSESSIVE FOKM OF NOUNS. 47 XVn. POSSESSIVE FORM OF NOUNS. 1. We are now to learn about a change in the form of nouns which gives them the use of adjectives. 2. Compare — This coat with John''s coat. The small shoes with ladies' shoes. A fine house with father'' s house. This ^ Small >• are adjectives. Fine ) 3. Now what shall we say about "John's" and " ladies' " and " father's ?" These words seem to have the same use as "this" and "small" and "fine," for each of these words limits the noun with which it is joined. The words "John's," "ladies'," "father's" have no mean- ing by themselves. When we hear them spoken, we ask John's ichatf father's what? They must be used with some noun, and hence such words have the use of ad- jectives. Words like "John's," "father's" are general- ly called nouns in the 2^ossessive case. 4. Definition. — The possessive case of a noun is a form of the noun to denote possession. 5. Rule I. — The possessive singular of a noun is formed by adding the apostrophe and s ('s) to the subject-form of the noun. Thus, subject - form, boy: possessive case, boy^s ; man: possessive case, man^s; horse: possessive case, horse's, 6. Rule II. — The possessive plural of nouns that have their plural in s (that is, regular plural) is formed by writ- 48 LANGUAGE LESSONS. ing merely the apostrophe after the s. Thus, plural sub- ject-form, hoys: possessive, hoys' ; ladies: possessive, ladies'. But if the plural does not end in s, as men^ then add the apostrophe and s for the plural. Thus, men : pos- sessive, meii's. ILLUSTEATIONS. Subject -form. Possessive Singular. Possessive Plural. Lion. Lion's. ' Lions'. Scholar. Scholar's. Scholars'. Valley. Valley's. Valleys'. City. City's. Cities'. Wife. Wife's. Wives'. Potato. Potato's. Potatoes'. Fox. Fox's. Foxes'. Calf. Calf's. Calves'. Dwarf. Dwarf's. Dwarfs'. Tooth. Tooth's. Teeth's. Brooch. Brooch's. Brooches'. Sheep. Sheep's. Sheep's. Child. Child's. Children's. Moses. Moses's. (No plural.) Davis. Davis's. (No plural.) Jacobs. Jacobs's. (No plural.) James. James's. EXPLANATION. (No plural.) By looking down the middle column, and comparing the words there with their subject-form, you will see that it is hardly possible to make a mistake in writing the possessive singular, for all you have to do is to add an apostrophe and s to the subject-form ; and if you can spell that, you can spell the possessive correctly. But the possessive plural is much more difficult to write. The reason is, that you must first have correctly the subject-form of the plural ; and if you do not have per- fectly in your mind the different ways of making the plural, you may fall into error in writing the possessive. Thus, for example, the pos- sessive plural of "city" is cities\ not citys\ for the reason that the pos- sessive plural is formed by adding the apostrophe to the plural subject- form, and the plural subject-form is cities, the y being changed into te, POSSESSIVE FORM OP NOUNS. 49 because preceded by a consonant, and s added. (See page 28.) On the other hand, the possessive plural of "valley" is vallei/s\ because the subject plural is valleys. The scholars may give the reason for the spelling of all the possessive plurals in the above list. Exercise 15. A. Put the following expressions into the possessive form : Model. — The bonnet of Mary : possessive form — Mary's bonnet. 1. The bonnet of Mary. 2. The Church of St. Stephen. 3. The house of Mr. Jacob. 4. The house of Mr. Jacobs. 5. The carriage of the Empress. 6. The lap-dog of the Duchess. 7. For the sake of pity. 8. The tail of the sheep. 9. The tails of several sheep. 10. The hoofs of the oxen. B. Write the following singular possessives in the plural form : 1. The horse's teeth. 2. The deer's horns. 3. The child's play- things. 4. The hero's harp ; the lover's lute. 5. A woman's dress. G. The soldier's gun. 7. Our teacher's greatest desire. 8. A prince's iiivor. 9. The sparrow's nest. 10. The gentleman's umbrella. C. 1. Write a sentence on the elephant, using the possessive form in the singular. 2. Write a sentence on our country, using the possessive form in the singular. 3. Write a sentence on lady, using the possessive form in the plural. 4. Write a sentence on the crocodile, using the possessive form in tlie plural. 5. Write a sentence on the sheep, using the possessive form in both the singular and the plural. 6. Write a sentence on the calf, using the possessive form in the plural. Exchange papers for correction. Write letters to your teacher, pointing ont the mistakes in your classmate's exercise, so far as regards the possess- ive nouns. 50 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XVIII. ADVERBS. The big fire burns brightly. That book is exceedingly dear. Some birds fly very swiftly. 1. The word "brightly" modifies the meaning of the verb "burns;" "exceedingly" modifies the meaning of the adjective "dear;" "very" modifies the meaning of the adverb "swiftly." "Brightly," "exceedingly," "very" are adverbs. 2. Definition. — An adverb is a word which modifies the meaning of a verb, of an adjective, or of another adverb. 3. W7ien, where, or how a thing occurs can be expressed only by the words called adverbs. For example : I saw my uncle [When ?] yesterday Time. I met him [Where?] here Place. He spoke to me [How ?] pleasantly Manner. Words that express time, place, and manner are ad- verbs, because they are used with verbs in the same way as adjectives are used with nouns. 4. Adverbs lay stress on adjectives: This ink is black Simple quality. This ink is very black \ Degree expressed by That ink is too black > .. ,f n^ ij n ^■u »» rpu * • 1 • .t 1.1 1 { "very," "too," "rather." Ihat ink is rather black ) 5. Adverbs of degree may also be used to add force to other adverbs : She plays nicely She plays very nicely. He talks hastily He talks too hastily. The bird is there The bird is exactly, or just there. ■ ADVERBS. 61 6. Most adverbs end in ly. This suffix literally means like^ thus J gayly means literally gay -like. What does sweetly mean ? nicely ? splendidly ? 7. "We may take almost any adjective and add the suffix ly to it, and we shall have an adverb. The adverb will always mean in the manner of the quality denoted by the adjective from which it is made. Thus : Adj. Gay+ly=adv. gayly : ^?^ a gay manner. Adj. Sweet+ly=adv. sweetly: in a sweet maimer. Adj. Nice+ly=zadv. nicely: in a nice mamier. Note. — Most words ending in ly are adverbs. But there are a few that are not. Thus, lovely is not an adverb, but an adjective. By the following rule you can generally tell adverbs from adjectives : If the ly is added to an adjective, it forms an adverb ; if the ly is added to a noun, it forms an adjective. In lovely^ the ly is added to a noun — love: hence, lovely is an adjective. In kindly^ the ly is added to an adjective— A;i/i(Z.- hence, kiridly is an adverb. 8. Some adverbs do not end in ly. They are generally short words denoting time, place, manner, or cause. Papils will write on their slates the foUo^ving list : Adverbs of Time : to-day; early; soon; now; then; when. Adverbs of Place : here ; there ; above ; below ; far ; near. Adverbs of Manner : well; ill; how; very; yet; not. Adverbs of Cause : why ; therefore ; whence. 9. Adverbs are compared in the same manner as ad- jectives. Positive. Com2mraiive. Superlative, Soon. Sooner. Soonest. Sweetly. More sweetly. Exercise 16. Most sweetly. Underline the A. adverbs. 1. The wind blew terribly. 2. The boys swim badly. 3. I know where he did it, when he did it, and why he did it. 4. Charles was here 52 LANGUAGE LESSONS. yesterday. 5. The stars are very bright. 6. We must win now or never. 7. The eagle flies exceedingly high. 8. Alice's exercise is well written. 9. We shall not fail. 10. The Tribune comes out daily. 11. Few men are always happy. 12. This lesson has not been perfectly prepared. B. Insert the adverbs that are omitted. 1. Wild flowers fade . 2. Glass is brittle. 3. The exer- cise is written. 4. Young people should rise . 5. The boy has returned. 6. Well-baked bread is wholesome. 7. will you come? 8. Tell him to walk — — . 9. You may go . 10. We shall rest . *"• 1 . Make six sentences containing adverbs of time 2. Make six sentences containing adverbs of place 3. Make eight sentences containing ad- verbs of manner , ,, , , ^ . , , r Using the adjectives so/if, 4. Make twelve sentences contammg ad- ! bitter, Jine, verbs of c/e^ree ^ ^^^^^ ^^^^ D. Tell which of the words ending with ly are adverbs, and which are adjectives : 1. The farmer's extensive fields produce abundantly. 2. Be it ever so homely, there's no place like home. 3. We are exceedingly anxious to leara. 4. Go, lovely rose. 5. The vessel has been sailing slowly under steam for two hours. G. The motherly care of the hen is plainly shown. Using the verbs come, go, call, icalk, run, jump, fiy, sing, cry, etc. PHRASES. 63 XIX. PHRASES. 1. The armored man. 2. Our sea-side cottage. 3. A beautiful thing. 1. In these expressions the words "armored," "sea- side," " beautiful," are adjectives. 2. We may give the same idea by saying, 1. The man in armor. 2. Our cottage by the sea-side. 3. A thing of beauty. 3. Take these beautiful words of the poet Shelley : Like a glow-worm golden In a dell of dew^ Scattering unbeholden Its aerial hue. The words " in a deicy dell " would convey the same sense as "in a dell of dew?'* 4. In the expressions " in armor," " by the sea-side," "of beauty," "armor," "sea-side," and "beauty" are nouns. The words " in " and " of" are prepositions. In the expression "the man in armor," the preposition "in" joins "armor" to "man." In the expression "by the sea- side," the preposition "by" joins "sea-side" to "cottage." In the expression " a thing of beauty," the preposition " of" joins " beauty " to " thing." 5. Definition. — A preposition joins a noun or pronoun to some other word, and shows the relation which one thing bears to another. 6. We have in English about fifty of these relation words. Six of the most used are to, of for, from, loith, by. 54 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Note.— The scholar may soon learn to tell prepositions by remem- bering that these little words are usually followed either immediately or very soon by a noun. There may be one or two adjectives be- tween the preposition andjts noun ; and the pupil must not be misled by this. Thus we may say, " I saw a man with a long white heardy Here "with" is a preposition, and it joins "beard" to "man"=a man with a heard that was long and white. 7. Definition.— A preposition with its accompanying noun is called a phrase. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. Brevity is the soul of wit. 2. There is no terror in your threats, 3. For I in spirit saw thee move . Through circles \ of the hounding shy. 4. Four angels xcith flaming swords guarded the gates of Paradise. 8. A single word may often bo changed into a phrase. For example : Single Words. Phrases. He leaves early He leaves at an early hotir. You stood here You stood on this spot. We shall come speedily We shall come with speed. Exercise 17. A. Name the prepositiojis. 1. The sheep are in the meadow. 2. The room is full of children. 3. He lives in the old cottage at the foot of the hill. 4. My book is below yours. 5. You came after the time. 6. The dog runs across the field. B. Select the ^^mses. 1. The trees of the garden are loaded with fruit. 2. I walked yester- day from our house to the church. 3. The river flows down the valley. 4. The boy in the boat caught a fish with a line. 5. A sailor at sea. looks hopefully for land. 6. The child met me on the road. PHBASES. 55 c. Change the italicized words into phrases. 1. It is pleasant to lie on a. flowery bed. 2. The army advanced has- tily. 3. Jenny Lind sang sweetly. 4. Sensible men sometimes differ in opinion. 5. The professor delivered an historical lecture. 6. There were no railroads then. D. Supply appropriate prepositio7is. Tell what words are joined, and name the phi^ases formed. Example. — The visitor passed through the gate. 1. The visitor passed • the gate. 2. Swallows build the eaves of houses. 3. The mighty Andes rise the clouds. 4. The sun is eclipsed by the passage of the moon his disk. 5. The orator was received applause. E. Make sentences with the following phrases : Model. — The horse stands in his stall. In the house, on the table, at the school, by the waterside, to the church, into the shop, toward High Street, up the hill, down the hill, from the farm, over the river, across the bridge, under the tree, above the water, behind the curtain, before the glass, near the fire, through the field, beyond the gate, among the com, since yesterday, till to-morrow, during the shower, after the storm. Express by single icords the meaning of the phrases in italics : ' 1. A man of courage does not fear death. 2. We sailed on the river by the light of the moon. 3. The antlered monarch sprang in haste from his couch of heather. 4. Learning is the eye of the mind. 5. A settler /Vom Australia returned last week. C. People at this time live better than they ever did before. 56 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XX. ADJECTIVE AND ADVERBIAL PHRASES. 1. There are two kinds of phrases : I. Adjective phrases. II. Adverbial phrases. 2. A phrase is an adjective plirase when it has the use of an adjective ; that is, when it limits a noun, ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. The man in armor. 2. A thing of heauty. The phrase "in armor" limits the noun "man;" the phrase "of beauty" limits the noun " thing." The phrase "in armor " is equiva- lent to the adjective "armored ;" the phrase " of beauty" is equiva- lent to the adjective " beautiful." Hence these are adjective phrases. Adjective Phrases. Adjectives. A person of note A noted person. A man of good character A good man. A settler in, of, or from Australia An Australian settler. Property belonging to me -S/jit property. '^ (Pleasant) to the taste Palatable. (Made) of wood Wooden. (Full) of anxiety Anxiotts. 3. A phrase is an adverbial phrase when it has the use of an adverb. ILLUSTKATIONS. 1. A great man lives here. The word ' ' here " is an adverb : it limits the verb * ' lives. " Instead of the word "here," we may substitute the phrase "in this place." 2. A great man lives ^V^ this place. As the phrase "in this place" limits the verb "lives," it must be' an adverbial phrase. ADJECTIVE AND ADVERBIAL PHRASES. 57 3. The army advanced rapidly. In place of the adverb "rapidly," we may substitute the phrase *' with rapidity." As this phrase limits the verb "advanced," it is an adverbial phrase. Exercise 18. A. Select the phrases, and tell whether they are adjective or adverbial xl. Silk-worms are not reared in this country. 2. The wool of the sheep is clipped eveiy year. 3. The boy stood on the burning deck. 4. The house with the seven gables still stands. 5. Cajsar returned in triumph. 6. Books of travel are very interesting. B. Change the following phrases into adjectives or ad- verbs : 1. In a huriy. 2. In rags. 3. A chain of silver. 4. Grapes /ro7« Spain. 5. With joy. G. With sorrow. 7. In a calm manner. 8. By force. 9. In a beautiful manner. 10. A person born in America. C. Let the following fable be read aloud. Then let the scholars write out an abstract from memory, underlining each phrase. After this is done, exchange papers for correction, and address letters to the teacher criticising the exercise. , THE HARE AND THE TORTOISE. A hare laughed at a tortoise on account of his slowness, and vainly boasted her own great speed in running. The tortoise then proposed to make a match. They were to run five miles, and a fox was to be the umpire of the race. The hare agreed, and away they both started to- gether. But the hare, by reason of her exceeding swiftness, outran the tortoise to such a degree that she made a jest of the matter. Believing herself sure of the race, she squatted in a tuft of fern that grew by the way and took a nap, thinking that, if the tortoise went by, she could at any time easily overtake him. In the mean time the tortoise came jog- ging on, with slow but constant motion ; and the hare, out of too great security and confidence of victory, oversleeping herself, the tortoise ar- rived at the end of tlie race first. 3* 68 LANGUAGE LESSONS. . XXL LESSON IN MAKING SENTENCES WITH PHRASES. i. The teacher of our academy gave prizes. Here we have one phrase, "of our academy." 2. The teacher of our academy gave prizes /or scholar- ship. Here we add a second phrase, *' for scholarship." 3. On exhibition-day^ the teacher of our academy gave prizes /or scholarship. Here we add a third phrase, "on exhibition-day." 4. It is very easy to take a number of statements, each containing a phrase, and combine them all into a single sentence, just as we did in a former lesson in the case of a number of statements with adjectives. ILLUSTRATION. 1. Columbus returned from his voyage. 2. He returned from his voyage to the West Indies. 3. He returned in 1493. These may be combined thus : 1. Columbus returned from his voyage to the West Indies in 1493; or, 2. In 1493 Columbus returned from his voyage to the West Indies ; or, 3. Columbus, in 1493, returned from his voyage to the West Indies. 5. When we have a number of phrases in a sentence, it often becomes a nice question to decide how we shall arrange them. In the above illustration, the second form is better than the first. The reason is that, in the first form, both the phrases, *' from his voyage to the West LESSON IN MAKING SENTENCES WITH PHRASES. 59 Indies" and "in 1493" are crowded together at the end of the sentence. 6. The only rule that can be given in this matter is that where the phrases can be changed in position, they should be so placed as to make the sentence sound most agreeable to the ear. See in how many irayg yon can place the phrase <<on ChristmasheTe" in the following sentence : On Christmas-eve Washington called a council of his officers at Trenton. Which arrangement do you like best ? Why ? Exercise 19. Combine the following statements into single sentences, each containing but one subject and one predicate, and each bringing in all the phrases in the group. The prin- cipal statement is given first. 1. The first Congress met. It met at Philadelphia. It met in the year 1776. 2. The battle began. It began the next morning. It began at daybreak. It began in terrible earnest. 3. Printing was invented. It was in Germany it was invented. It was in the fourteenth century it was invented. It was invented by Gutenberg. 4. Washington took his departure. He took his departure from New York. He took his departure amidst the tears of his officers. 5. The Yosemite Valley is noted. This valley is in California. It is noted for its magnificent scenery. Exchange papers for correction. See if each sentence is a simple sentence, and whether the phrases are arranged in the best order. Then write letters of criticism. CO LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXII. NOUNS IN APPOSITION. 1. Here is a sentence which illustrates a use of nouns which we have not had thus far : William, the hlacJcsmith^ shoes horses. The subject of this sentence is "William ;" the predicate is "shoes horses." 2. What effect have the words " the blacksmith f" They explain which " William " is meant. 3. Write this sentence : The heroic Warren fell at Bunker Hill. Here we use an adjective with the name " Warren." What is the adjective? 4. We might express the same thought by saying, Warren, the hero^ fell at Bunker Hill. Here we use a noun^ "hei*o," with the name "Warren." The noun *'hero" is explanatory of "Warren." A noun thus used is called a noun in apposition, 5. Definition. — A noun used to explain another word is called a noun in apposition. 6. A noun with this explanatory use may itself be described by an adjective, or a number of adjectives, or by a phrase. ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. Warren, the gallant young hero, fell at Bunker Hill. 2. Washington, the commander of the army, Vas born in Virginia. In the first sentence, the noun "hero" is in apposition with "War- ren:" at the same time, the noun "hero " is limited by the adjectives "gallant" and "young." In the second sentence, the noun "com- mander " is in apposition with * ' Washington, " while it is limited by the phrase " of the army." NOUNS IN APPOSITION. 61 7. Punctuation. — An explanatory noun, or expression, is set off by a comma or by commas. Notic(3, in the illustrations just given, how the explanatory nouns and expressions are separated by commas. In the sentence, "War- ren, the gallant young hero, fell at Bunker Hill," the whole phrase, " the-gallant-young-hero, " is separated by commas from the other parts of the sentence. 8. The sentence, "Warren, the gallant young hero, fell at Bunker Hill," may be separated into several distinct state- ments, thus : 1. Warren fell at Bunker Hill. 2. Warren was a hero. 3. He was a gallant hero. 4. He was a young hero. 9. In like manner, the following statements may be combined into one sentence : 1. Howard was loved by all. 2. Howard was 2^ philanthropist. 3. He was a distinguished philanthropist. Combined : Howard, the distinguished philanthropist, was loved by all. In the following exercise, each group of statements is to be combined into a single sentence in the manner abore shown. Exercise 20. A. Combine into single s^nte7ices, using the noun printed in italics in a2)positio?i with the noun which it explains. 1 . James Watt was born in Greenock. He was the inventor of the steam-engine. 2. Bryant wrote "Thanatopsis." He is an American poet. He is an illustrious poet. 62 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 3. Benjamin Franklin learned his trade. Benjamin Franklin was a philosopher. He was a distinguished philosopher. He learned his trade in the office of his brother. His brother was a printer in Boston. 4. David slew Goliath. David was the son of Jesse. Goliath was a Philistine. 5. William the Conqueror defeated Harold. Harold was the Saxon king. 6. The whale is found in the Arctic and Antarctic seas. The whale is the largest [inammaT] of mammals. 7. Coral is highly prized for ornaments. Coral is a secretion from the body of an animal. This animal is called a polyp. 8. Sago is excellent for sick people and young children. Sago is Q-food. It is a cheap food. It is a nourishing food. B. Let each pupil compose a similar group of statements to be combined in the same way. Observation. — In writing the exercise given above, a class of young pupils made mistakes like the following: James Watt, who was the inventor of the steam-engine, was born in Greenock." James Watt was born in Greenock, and he was the inventor of the steam-engine. These forms are incorrect, because the bringing in of another verb and subject, **who was" and "he was," prevents the word "inventor" being in apposition with " James Watt." The correct form is : James Watt, the inventor of the steam-engine, was born in Green- ock. VERBS WITH OBJECTS. 63 XXIII. VERBS WITH OBJECTS. 1. We have thus far learned about only one kind of verb — the kind found in such sentences as Birds/y, Fishes swim. The verb "fly" with its subject makes a complete statement ; so does the verb " swim." 2. But take the following verbs : Columbus discovered . James Watt invented . These are not complete statements : they do not make full sense. We ask, Discovered what? Invented what? We are waiting to be told of some object that Columbus discovered, some object that Watt invented. 3. We may make complete statements in this way : Columbus discovered America. James Watt invented the steam-engvie. What was "discovered" was "America." What was "invented" was the "steam-engine." 4. Verbs that make complete statements by themselves are called complete verbs. 5. Verbs that do not make complete statements by themselves, but require some word to complete the sense, are called incom2)lete verbs. 6. These are the two great classes into which all verbs are divided — complete and incomplete verbs. 1. Almost all the incomplete verbs are completed by nouns, called their object; as, Thomas bought a kite; Men hate their enemies. Verbs that take objects are called transitive verbs. 64 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Note. — When a verb is followed by a number of noun-objects, the nouns are to be separated by commas, in the same manner as the ad- jectives in a series. Thus : All children require clothing, food, lodg- ing, and instruction. 8. The verb he is an incomplete verb ; and its mean- ing may be filled out either by nouns or by adjectives. 9. Do tlie words " Gold is " make a full statement ? Ans. No. Do the words "Washington wasf'' We may complete the sense in this way : Gold is yellow. Gold is a metal. Washington was pinide?it. Washington was a general. 10. In the sentences " Gold is yellow," " Washington was prudent," the verbs " is " and " was " (parts of the verb he) are completed by adjectives — "yellow" and " prudent." Note, — The verb he is the only verb that is completed by an ad- jective^ except a few verbs, such as feel, look, grow, etc., which con- tain in themselves the sense of the verb be. We shall see about these afterwards. 11. An adjective that completes the sense of the verb be is called a predicate adjective. ^ 12. In the sentences "Gold is a metal,^'' "Washington was a general^'' the verbs " is " and " was " are completed by nouns — " metal " and " general." A noun that com- pletes the verb he is not called its ohject^ but is called the predicate nominative. This means that the noun in the predicate means the same person or thing as the noun forming the suhject. Exercise 21. A. Name the verbs, and tell which are complete^ and which incomplete : 1 . The India-rubber tree grows in Brazil. 2. Whitney invented the cotton-gin. VERBS WITH OBJECTS. 65 ^ 3. Fulton constructed the first steamboat. 4. The moon moves round the earth. 5. Machines for making solid-headed pins were invented in the United States. 6. "William Cullen Bryant wrote T/ianatopsis. 1. Write a sentence telling what yon saw at the museum. [Use as many noun-objects as you choose.] 2. Write a sentence telling several objects that the carpenter mahes. 3. Write a sentence telling three things that your State produces. 4. Write a sentence naming four things that you study. 5. Write a sentence specifying several objects that the hardware mer- chant sells. 6. Write a sentence paming several books that you have read. Draw a line under each noun-object, and two lines under each incomplete verb whose sense is completed by these objects. Exchange papers, and give particular attention to the punctuation of the nouns. C. Fill out the blanks ; first by a predicate 7ioun^ then by a predicate adjective. When done, unite the two in one sentence. Example. — Iron is . Iron is a metal. [Predicate nominative.] Iron is hard. [Predicate adjective.] Iron is a hard metal. [Sentences united.] 1 . Iron is . 2. Sugar is . 3. Paul Jones was . 4. Clarissa will be . 5. The sky is . 6. The moon is . 7. Diamonds are . 8. James has been . 9. This church is . 10. Franklin was . 66 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXIY. REVIEW OF NOUNS. - I. A noun may be used as the subject of a verb y as, Columbus discovered America. II. It may be used as the predicate nominative ; as, The discoverer of America was Columbus. III. It may be used as the object of a verb ; as, We should honor Columbus. lY. It may have an adjective use [possessive case] ; as, Columbus's discovery was a great event. Y. It may have an explanatory use ; as. That great man, Columbus, discovered America. YI. It may be used with a preposition to form a phrase ; as, A new continent was discovered by Colum- bus. 1. Nouns have precisely the same form when used as the subjects of verbs, as predicate nominatives, as the objects of verbs, as explanatory, and in phrases. J . The sea [subject] surrounds the globe. • 2. Homer loved the sea [object]. 3. That great body of water, the sea [explanatory], surrounds the globe. 4. Ships sail on the sea [phrase]. 2. In its adjective use the noun undergoes the change of form called the possessive case.. The sed^s depth is many miles. In my Fatlier'^s house are many mansions. 3. A noun used as the subject of a verb or as a pred- icate nominative is said to be in the nominative case ; used as an adjective, it is said to be in the possessive case ; used as the object of a verb, or joined to another REVIEW OF NOUNS. 67 word by a preposition, it is said to be in the objective case. A regular arrangement of the cases or uses of a noun is called its decle?ision; as — Singular. Plural. Nominative girl girls. Possessive girl's girls'. Objective girl girls. Exercise 22. A. Tell the case of each noun: 1 . A shepherd watches sheep. 2. Mary shall see the mayor, 3. The teacher's book fell on the floor. 4. John's little boy plays. 5. John's little boy, William, plays. . 6. The whale is a mammal. 7. The horn of the hunter is heard on the hill. 8. The poet wrote charmingly. 9. The girls' bonnets are made of straw. 10. A man killed a tigress. B. Write five sentences on each of the following subjects. In the first bring in the noun in its subject use; in the second, in its adjective use ; in the third, in its object use ; in the fourth, in its explaiiatory use \appositio7i\ ; in the fifth, in lis phrase use. Model. — The Ocean. 1. The ocean is the great body of water surrounding the globe. 2. The ocean's greatest depth has never been found out. 3. The Sandwich Islanders love the ocean. 4. That great body of water, the ocean, surrounds the globe. 5. The Atlantic cable runs under the ocean. l^The Mississippi. ^Mother. 5>^Paper. 2. The museum. 4. Washington. 6. Tiger. 68 . LANGUAGE LESSONS. c. Read aloud the following piece, and then make an ab- stract of it. Underline all the nouns. Over nouns that are subjects mark s. " " " " objects.... " ob. " ** " " possessives " poss. " " " " in apposition " ap. *' " " •' used in phrases " ph. TPIE GREAT BATTLE OF HASTINGS. [Dickens's Child's History of England.'] There was one tall Nonnan knight who rode before the Norman army on a prancing horse, throwing up his heavy sword and catching it, and singing of the bravery of his countrymen. An English knight, who rode out from the English lines to meet him, fell by this knight's hand. An- other English knight rode out, and he fell too. But then a third rode out and killed the Norman. This was the first beginning of the fight. It soon raged everywhere. The English, keeping side by side in a great mass, cared no more for the showers of Norman arrows than if they had been showers of Norman rain. When the Norman horsemen rode against them, with their battle- axes they cut men and horses down. The Normans gave way. The English pressed forward. Duke William, the Norman commander, pre- tended to retreat. The eager English followed. Duke William's army turned again, and fell upon the English with great slaughter. The sun rose high, and sank, and the battle still raged. Through all the wild October day the clash and din resounded in the air. In the red sunset, and in the white moonlight, heaps upon heaps of dead men lay strewn all over the ground. Harold, the Saxon king, wounded in the eye bt an arrow, was nearly blind. His brothers were already kilfed. At length Harold, the king, received a mortal wound and dropped. The English broke and fled. The Normans rallied, and the day was lost. Exchange papers, and irrite letters of criticism. PRONOUNS. 69 XXV. PRONOUNS. Charles went to Paris with his mother, and he came back without her, 1. In this sentence w^e make use of three pronouns^ namely, " his," " he," and " her." 2. If we had not these words, we should be forced to say, Charles went to Paris with Charles's mother, and Charles came back without Charleses mother. 3. Definition. — A pronoun is a word that stands for a noun. 4. There are two leading kinds of pronouns : perso?ial pronouns and relative pronouns. The teacher ttUI dictate, and the scholars will irrite the foIlOTring sen- tences, underscoring the pronouns. 1. William said to Charles, "/am weaiy of your questions;" and he ceased to trouble him. 2. The mountain was higher than we expected it to be. 3. Tell tne what brings you, gentle youth, to Rome. 4. Csesar conquered Gaul with his legions. 6. My face is my fortune, sir, she said. 6. A tree is known by its fruit. 7. Let me die the death of the righteous. 8. Our inner monitor tells us that we are immortal. 9. Emily lent her cousin a novel. 10. They say that their hopes deceive them. 5. In these ten sentences Ave have written the personal pronouns most used, and their various forms. 6. T and we are called the personal pronouns of the Jirst person. 1. You is called the personal pronoun of the second person. 8. Ile^ she, it, and they are called the personal pro- nouns of the thii'd person. 10 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 9. The Jirst person denotes the speaker. The second " " " person spoken to. The third " " " person spoken of. 10. The pronouns have in general the same uses as nouns ; that is — I. They may be the subjects of verbs ; as, We love ; she loves. II. They may be used as predicate nominatives ; as, That was he. III. They may be the objects of verbs ; as, John loves me. IV. They may be used as adjectives ; as, my hat ; his coat ; tjow dog. V. They may be used in phrases ; as, Mary goes xvith me ; Rich- ard is helped by him. 11. But there is this difference between nouns and pro- nouns, that, while nouns used as objects and in phrases have the same form as nouns used as subjects, the per- sonal pronouns have generally distinct forms for each use. PERSONAL PRONOUN, FIRST PERSON. Singular. Plural. Subject form I. We. Adjective form My. Our, Object and Phrase form Me. Us. PERSONAL PRONOUN, SECOND PERSON. Singular and Plural. Subject form You. Adjective form Your. Object and Phrase form You. PERSONAL PRONOUNS, THIRD PERSON. Singular. Plural for all. Males. Females. Things. Subject form He. She. It. They. Adjective fonii His. Her. Its. Their. Object and Phrase form . . Him. Her. It. Them. 12. The various for7ns taken by a pronoun arc called its cases. PKONOUNS. 11 The form of a pronoun used as the subject of a verb is called the nomiiiative case. The form of a pronoun used to limit a noun (that is, adjective use) is called the possessive case. The form of a pronoun used as the object of a verb, or with a preposition to make a phrase, is called the objective case. Case. Singular. Plural Nominative I "We. Possessive , My Our. Objective , Me Us. Nominative You You. Possessive Xour Your. Objective You You. ( ^ Nominative He She. . .It They. Possessive His. . .Her. . .Its Their. Objective Him . .Her. . .It Them. notes. The pronoun our has another form ours. *' '* your " " yours. " " their " *' theu-s. " " her " " hers. These forms are used witliout nouns in the predicate after the verb be. Thus : Our house is large This house is ours. Your house is large It is yours. Their coats are torn These coats are theirs. This is her doll This doll is hers. N.B. — Be very careful never to write ours, yours, theirs, hers, or its with an apostrophe — thus, our's, your's, their's, her's, it's. 13. The chief use of personal pronouns is to prevent the repetition of nouns. Here is a little composition on " The Lion," written by a young scholar : The lion is an animal. The lion is a large animal. The lion is a powerful animal. 72 LANGUAGE LESSONS. By using the pronoun he^ instead of the second and third lion, we should improve these sentences : The lion is an animal. He is large. lie is powerful. Or The lion is an animal. He is large and powerful. Exercise 23. A. Tell the person, number, and case of the personal pro- nouns in the following sentences : 1 . We have just received our presents. 2. Tell him what you think of yours. 3. My letter has not reached you. • 4. He has come to live with us. 5. Your aunt has lost her glove. 6. The children have brought their prizes to me. 7. The sheep has had its fleece shorn. 8. Our friend will see you on his return. 9. When will they pay their promised visit ? 10. I have not learned my grammar. B. See if you can improve these sentences by using pro- nouns in place of nouns. Make any other little improve- ments you can ; but do not change the sense. 1. The camel is called the ship of the desert. The camel is a beast of burden. The camel can go many days without water. 2. Holland is below the level of the sea. Holland is defended from the sea by dikes. The people of Holland are very industrious. 3. Israel Putnam was a brave old soldier. Israel Putnam's exploit of riding down the rocks at Horseneck is known to every one. 4. The crocodile lives in large swamps. The crocodile belongs to the lizard kind. The crocodile is amphibious. 5. Alexander was an ambitious man. Alexander conquered the whole world, and then sighed because Alexander had not more worlds to conquer. KELATIVE" PRONOUNS. V3 XXVI. RELATIVE PRONOUNS. 1. This is the man who called on yon. 2. I have lost the book which I bought. r 3. The house that you saw is sold. 4. Tell me what you did. 1. In the first sentence, the pronoun " who " stands for j^he word "man," and connects the second statement, '^^called on you," with " this is the man." 2. In the second sentence, the pronoun "which" stands .. for "book," and connects the two statements "I bought" "and " I have lost the book." 3. In the third sentence, tlie pronoun " that " connects the statements " the house is sold " and " you saw." 4. In the fourth sentence, the pronoun " what " means the same as "the thing which," and connects the two statements " tell me " and " you did." 5. Definition.— A relative pronoun stands for a noun, and connects two statements of a sentence. 6. The relative pronouns are icho, which^ that, and what. 1. The noun for which a relative pronoun stands is called its antecedent. 8. Who is used only of persons; as. The ma7i who reads. Which is used of things, or of the low^er animals ; as, the table which fell ; the dog which barks, lliat is often used for either who or which; as, the man that reads [used for who] ; the table that fell [used for lohich]. 9. There is only one of these pronouns that has a sep- arate form for the subject use, the adjective use, and the object use. This is who. 4 74 LANGUAGE "LESSONS. Sing, and Plur^ Nbnmiative. (Subject form) Who. Possessive. . . (Adjective form) Whose. Objective (Object and phrase form) Whom. Who, whose, whom, which, and what, when used to ask questions, are called interrogative pronouns. Who said so ? Whose book is this ? Whom did you see ? Which of you said so ? What do you say ? A sentence that asks a question is called an interrogative sentence. An interrogative sentence ends with a point of interrogation, marked thus ? Distinguish the pronouns, telling irhether they are relatiTO or Interroga- tlTC. 1. Who has been in the room? 2. The man who was here yesterday has been in the room. 3. London, which stands on the Thames, is the capital of England. 4. AVhich of the boys will be present ? 5. I have seen the largest lion that was ever brought to this country. 6. Whose dog is that ? 7. This is the man whom you want. 8. I will tell you what I want. 9. Are these the dogs which your father had with him ? 10. Every person that saw it was pleased. 10. The chief use of relative pronouns is to connect statements so as to make one statement out of what would otherwise be two statements. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. We saw a man who killed a deer. The two statements in this sentence are, 1. We saw a man. 2. This man killed a deer. 2. The teacher whom we loved is dead. The two statements are, 1. The teacher is dead. 2. We loved hira. RELATIVE PRONOUNS. 75 Tell the two statements In this sentence : High on a throne of royal state, which far Outshone the wealth of Ormus or of Ind, Satan exalted sat. 1 1. It is a very pleasant exercise to take two or more statements and combine them into one sentence by using a relative pronoun to connect the statements. Thus : r 1. The discoveries of Livingstone have taught Separate State- J us much about the interior of Africa. ments | 2. Livingstone is one of the greatest travelers I of modern times. ( The discoveries of Livingstone, who was one Combined j of the greatest travelers of modern times, have I taught us much about the interior of Africa. Exercise 24. Combine each of the following groups of statements into one sentence in the manner shown. I 1. We get silk from a caterpillar. This caterpillar is called the silk-worm. 2. The doctor saw the patient. He was dying. 3. Young lads often fix on some older boy. This boy they imitate in every thing. 4. I thrice presented him with a kingly crown. This crown he did thrice refuse. 5. The engine killed the workman. He was the only support of a large fiimily. 6. The ofHcers pursued the lion. It had destroyed the cattle. 7. Congress sat in Independence Hall. It was prepared for the occasion. 8. Jefferson was a great statesman. ^ He wrote the Declaration of Independence. The teacher should add an abundance of other groups of statements to be combined. 76 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXVII. VERBS— SIMPLE TENSES. 1. What is the definition of a verb? — A verb is a statement-word. Now a statement may be made in various ways by changing the form of the verb used. ' 2. Suppose we say, Pauline stands ihQve. The verb " stands *' expresses that she is now in the place referred to. However, we may wish to state, not that this is the case at the present time, but that it was so yesterday, or last week or mouth. And this we express in the following manner : Pauline stood there. 3. We may say, I hope to see you. This means that we now hope. But I may desire to state I had this hope when I called yesterday. The statement will be made in this way : When I called yesterday, I hoped to see you. 4. The difference in the two ways of making the two statements is a difference of time. "Pauline stands'^^ makes the statement in the present time, and "Pauline stood'''' makes it in the time^as^. "I hope'''' — time pres- ent ; "I hoped'''' — time past. Make this statement of some time ago : Steamers sail on the ocean. Make this statement of last night : The fire burns brightly to-night. Make this statement, using ancient Greeks instead of we : "VVe admiro fine statues. Make this statement about the Germans a thousand years ago : The Germans love independence. VERBS — SIMPLE TENSES. 11 5. Here are some lines by the poet Longfellow : I shoot an arrow into the air, It falls to earth, I know not where ; For so swiftly it flies, the sight Can not follow it in its flight. These lines are not exactly as Longfellow wrote them ; for all the statements in them are made in the present time, whereas the author made all the statements refer to the past. Write the lines with all the verbs so expressed that they shall make these same statements about the past, and then you will have the verse precisely as the poet made it. 6. This change of form is called in grammar a change o^ tense, and "tense" means just the same thing as time. 1. The form of the verb denoting time present is called the present tense; that denoting time past is called the 2oast tense. 8. The present tense is the tense in which we state what is now going on. The past tense is the great tense of history, because history tells us what took place in by- gone times. Thus: 1. The Greeks conquered i\\Q Persians. 2. Columbus discovered America. 3. Fulton invented the steamboat. 9. Besides the present tense and the past tense, there is \X\Q future tense. We make this by using shall ov icill. 10. The future tense is the tense which we use when we wish to foretell any thing. Thus — 1. We shall go to Europe next year. 2. The population of the United States in a century will he one hundred millions. Exercise 25. A. Read aloud the following piece; then write of it what you can remember : Underline all the verbs in the past tcnso* 78 LANGUAGE LESSONS. THE CHICKS THAT WERE NOT CHICKS. There was once a big black hen that sat on ten eggs for three weeks. She sat day after day very patiently, and waited anxiously to see ten pretty little chicks come out of the nest and nestle under her warm wings. She did not know that Mother Butterball had slyly taken out the hen's eggs and put in their place ten eggs that were laid by an old duck, a noisy little neighbor of the big black hen. One day ten little sharp bills broke through their hard white shells, and with a glad " peep !" out came ten pretty little ducklings. The big black hen was a happy mother, for she thought she had ten little chicks hatched out of the ten eggs, about which she had cackled so loud when she laid them under the barn. She bustled about, said cluck ! cluck ! cluck ! and coaxed them out into the barn-yard, where she scratched out for them all a dainty breakfast. In a few days their legs got strong, and their mother took them down in a green field close to a beautiful pond of clear water. No sooner did they see the water than the ten little black ducklings cried out with joy, Quack ! quack ! quack ! quack ! and away they scampered to the pond as fast as their short little legs could carry them. The mischievous little things sailed right out into the middle of the pond, and then ducked their heads under the water. The big black hen thought they were drowning, and cried out at the top of her shrill voice. Cluck ! cluck ! cluck ! little black ducks ! come back quick ! come back quick ! But they dived and swam and sailed about, and did not come out until they got hungry. Then they Avere glad to go back with their step-mother, to their warm nest and a good supper in the barn-yard. B. Write a short composition telling what you think will he the condition of the world a hundred years hence. Tell about— The ways of traveling then — balloons, etc. The greatness of our country then — the number of the people, etc. Our knowledge of distant parts of the world then — the interior of Africa, the North Polar region, etc. Will all the governments of Europe then be republics ? Women voting then — will a woman be President ? Underline all the future tenses, and exchange papers for correction in letters of criticism. VERBS — FOBMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. 79 XXVIII. VERBS— FORMATION OF THE PAST TENSE. 1. We have seen that it is very easy to form the fut- ure tense ; for all we have to do is to use shall or will with a verb. But it is more difficult to form the past tense. 2. Here are some of the verbs we had in the last lesson. Present Tense, Past Tense, Stands. Stood. Hope. Hoped. Sail. • Sailed. Burn. Burned. Admire. Admired. Shoot. Shot. Fall. . Fell Know. Knew. Fly. Flew. 3. A number of these verbs form their past tenses by adding the suffix ed to their present tenses. (Mention some that do so.) Others do not form their past tense in this way. For instance, stand has for its past tense stood. What has "shoot I" "falll" "know!" "flyl" 4. We have in English several thousand verbs, and all these verbs, with the exception of about one hundred and fifty, form their past tense by suffixing ed to the present tense. Accordingly this is the regular way of making the past tense, and such verbs are called regular verbs. 5. The few verbs that do not form their past tense in 80 LANGUAGE LESSONS. this way are called irregular verbs. (Which of the verbs in the list are regular ? Which are irregular ?) 6. The past tense of I love is I loved. We can express the same thing by saying I did love. Now I \o\ed is just a shortened way of saying I love-did. 7. When we add ed to the present of a verb to make its past tense, great pains must be taken to have* the spelling correct. ILLUSTRATIONS. Love 4- ed — loved ; final e otlove dropped. Stop + ed = stopped ; final ^9 of stop doubled. Ofier 4- ed = offered ; final r of offer not doubled. Spy + ed = spied ; final y oi spy changed into ^. Obey + ed — obeyed ; final y of obey not changed.* Exercise 26. A. Combine the following verbs in the present tense with ed^ and be careful in regard to the spelling : 1. Hate + ed. 4. Prefer + ed. 2. Leap + ed. 5. Cry + ed. 3. Blot 4- ed. 6. Survey + ed. Exchange papers, and give the rule Tiolatcd (if any). Tell which verbs are regular, and which irregular. 1. The famine came at last upon the land, and many perished for want. 2. Father sold his fanii when he went to California. 3. The sun shone brightly yesterday. 4. Hearing the sound of footsteps, we resolved to go no farther. .5. Shakspeare wrote many dramas. 6. We hoped you would visit us when the leaves fell. * See in any Speller the rules for spelling with suffixes. VERBS — COMPOUND TENSES. 81 XXIX. VERBS— COMPOUND TENSES. 1. The three tenses that we have thus far learned about are, 1. The present; 2. The past; 3. The future. 2. Now as present, past, and future are the three great natural divisions of time, it would seem that these must be all the tenses that there can be. 3. Compare I walk with I have walked. " I walked " I had walked. " I shall walk '* I shall have vmlked. 4. I have walked is a kind of present. We may say Z have walked a mile to-day ; but not I have walked a mile yesterday. It is a kind of present tense, with the meaning that at the present time the action stated is completed. This might, therefore, be called the present completed ; but in grammar it is usually named the pres- ent perfect — "perfect" meaning perfected, that is, com- pleted. 5. In the same way, I had walked is a past tense ; but it differs from the ordinary past, I walked. Walked is in- definite : I walked this morning, yesterday, last year, etc. But I had walked to the depot before the train arrived. This is called the past perfect, and it makes a statement of something done in the past before something else done in the past. 6. I shall have walked is called the future perfect tense. It makes a statement of something that will be done in the future before something else takes place. Thus, I shall have walked to the depot before the train will arrive. T. The six tenses are, 1. Present ; 2. Past ; 3. Future ; 4. Present Perfect ; 5. Past Perfect ; G. Future Perfect. 4* 82 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Present Call or calls. Past Called. Future Shall or will call. Present Perfect Have or has called. Past Perfect Had called. Future Perfect Shall or will have called. 8. The present perfect, past perfect, and future xoerfect are called compound tenses, because they are made by means of the verb have, and have is called an auxiliary or helping verb. 9. The present tense of this helping verb is have ; the past is had ; the future is shall have. You can see that these words are found in the compound tenses : Present Perfect Have called. Past Perfect Had called. Future Perfect Shall have called. 10. Now what is the other part — namely, " called ?" The pupil may think that this is the past tense of the verb call, since we have seen that the past tense is usually formed from the present tense by suffixing ed. 11. But this is not the case. And we may see that it is not the case by taking an irregular verb, like write. The past tense of write is wrote. Now would you say I have wrote, I had lorote, I shall have lorote f Certainly not; you would say I have icritten, etc. The walked in I have walked is no more the past tense of walk than %critten is the past tense of write. 12. This form of the verb used in making the com- pound tenses is called the past participle. 13. The past participle of all regular verbs is the same in form as their past tense. Walk + ed = walked, Past Participle. Love 4- ed =r loved. Past Participle. Rob -|- ed =z robbed, Past Participle. 14. The past participle of irregular verbs is formed in various ways. VERBS — COMPOUND TENSES. 83 The past participle oi go is gone. " " " ''do is do7ie. " " " ''fall is fallen. Note. — The correct form of the past participle may always be known by putting it after I have. Thus, knew is not the past parti- ciple of the verb know^ because we can not say I have knew; we must say I have known, and known is the past participle. Exercise 27. A. Give the six tenses of the following verbs: 1. Roll. 3. Name. 5. Invent. 7. Move. 2. Go. 4. Know. 6. Fall. 8. Bring. B. Copy the following piece; then underline each verh^ and tell the compound tenses : THE YOUNG MOUSE. A young mouse lived in a cupboard where sweetmeats were kept ; she dined every day upon biscuit, marmalade, or fine sugar. Never any lit- tle mouse had lived so well. She had often ventured to peep at the fiimily while they sat at supper. Nay, she had sometimes stolen down on the carpet and picked up the crumbs, and nobody had even hurt her. Sometimes, howevei-, she was frightened by the cat, and then she ran trembling to the hole behind the wainscot. One day slie came running to her mother in great joy. "Mother!" said she, " the good people of this family have built me a house to live in ; it is in the cupboard. I am sure it is for me, for it is just big enough ; the bottom is of wood, and it is covered all over with wires ; and I think they have made it on puipose to screen me from that terrible cat which ran after me so often. There is an entrance just big enough for me, but Puss can not follow ; and they have been so good as to put in some toasted cheese, which smells so nice that I should have* run into my new house directly, but I thought I would tell you, that we might go in to- gether, and both lodge there to-night, for it will hold us both." "My dear child," said the old mouse, "it is most happy that you did not go in, for this house is called a trap, and you would never have come out again, except to be devoured, or put to death in some way or other. Though man has not so fierce a look as a cat, he is as much our enemy, and has still move cunning." 84 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXX. VERBS WITH PRONOUNS. 1. Verbs make statements; and they can make state- ments not only of all nouns, but also of the personal pronoims. 2. The personal i^ronouns are — I and we, denoting the speaker or speakers— called the first person. Yoic, denoting the person or persons spoken to — called the second person. He, she, it, and they, denoting the person or persons, or things, spoken of— called the third person. 3. Now take the verb walk. We can say : I walk. You walk. He walks. We walk. They walk. 4. When we are speaking of the verbs, we say that they are in the same person or number as the pronouns. That is, walk, with I, is said to be first person singular ; with you, it is second person singular or plural ; with he, she, it, or any singular noun, it is third person singu- lar; and with they, or any plural noun, it is third person plural. Note, — Thou was the old pronoun for the second person singular, and it took a particular form of the verb; thus, t?iou walkest, thou walkedst. But this form has now gone out of use, except in poetry and prayer, and by the Friends, or Quakers. 5. In the present tense there is only one change of the form of the verb — that is, the third person singular has an s. He, or the man, horse, etc., walks; but I, you. i VERBS WITH PRONOUNS. 85 wc, they walk. Hence, if you remember to put the s to a verb of the third singular in the present tense, you will be sure to liave the whole tense correct. 6. In the past tense no mistakes can be made, for the reason that the verb does not change its form with any of the pronouns. It is — I, you, he, we, they walked. 1. The future has no changes : it is — I, you, he, we, they shall or will walk. 8. The present perfect has but one change, namely, has, in the third person singular ; as, he has walked ; but I, you, we, they have walked. 9. The past perfect is had walked, with all the pro- nouns. 10. The future perfect is shall or will have walked, with all the pronouns. The following little table will show you the whole matter at a glance. Present tense Walk, walks. Past tense Walked. Future tense.. Shall or will walk. Present perfect tense Have walked, has walked. Past perfect tense Had walked. Future perfect tense Shall or will have walked. Exercise 28. Write the third person singular of the verb call in each of the six tenses. Write the first person plural of the verb drop in each of the six tenses. Write the second person singular and plural of the verb pull in each of the six tenses. Wiite the third person plural of the verb blame in each of the six tenses. Write the first person singular of the verb study in each of the six tenses. Write the verb love in all the persons and numbers in each of the six tenses. 86 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXI. MOODS OF VERBS. Teacher's Note. — It is recommended that this lesson bo merely- read over carefully once or twice. It will be enough for the present if pupils learn to recognize the form of a verb. The full conjugation will be given in the Supplement, and the intricacies of our English verb — intricacies, however, rather of nomenclature than of fact — may advan- tageously be postponed to the latest stage. 1. The six tenses that we have defiued all differ in re- gard to time ; but they all agree in making the state- ment as a fact actually taking place. All these tenses agree in indicating some fact ; and hence they are said to be tenses of the indicating loay of stating a matter. In grammar this is expressed by calling them tenses of the indicative mood. (Mood, or mode, means way or manner.) 2. But there are other ways of making statements. Thus we may wish to express the idea of the verb as a possibility. This is done by means of certain little words, such as may, can, might, coidd, icoidd, shoidd. When a statement is made in this way, the verb is said to be in t\\Q poteiitial {or possible) mood. May or ca7i walk is called the present potential of the verb toalk. Might (or could, would, or should) walk is called the past potential. May or ca7i have walked is called the present per- fect potential. Might (could, etc.) have walked is called the past perfect potential. 3. A second way of making a statement is to make it as a supposition. This is called the subjunctive mood ; 2^^, If he see the signal. If he have seen the signal, etc. MOODS OF VERBS. ' 87 4. A third way of using a verb is in giving a com- mand, as, Come! Go! This is called the imperative or commanding mood, and the whole mood consists of but one word. Note. — The subject of such a verb is always you (understood) ; for when we command, we must command the person spoken to, and the pronoun that denotes the person spoken to is the pronoun of the second person, you. 5. There is still another form of the verb. This is the verb in its simplest form, with the word to before it. Thus, to walk^ to ride^ to run^ to love. This is named the iiifinitive or undefined mood. 6. The infinitive mood has really the use of a noun. Thus I may say to ride is pleasant exercise, or I like to ride. In the first example, to ride is used as the subject of the verb is, and in the second as the object of the verb like; and being subject or object, it must have the use of a noun. T. Besides the past participle, there is another form of verbs that is very much used. This is called ihQ present participle. The present participle of all verbs is formed by suffixing ing to the simple form. Walk + ing = ^\Si\Wng, present participle. Love + ing = loving, present participle. Rob -f- ing = robbing, present participle. Fly 4- ing = flying, j9?'ese?2^^ar^iC2/)?e. 8. In naming verbs we must be very careful to include all the parts needed to make the statement. Thus — 1. The builders will commence to-day. Here the verb is will commence. 2. The sun may have set before we get home. Here the verb is may have set. 3. I shall not go to school to-day. Here the verb is shall go ; the word not comes between the two parts of the verb. 88 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 4. Never again shall my brothers embrace me. Here the verb is shall embrace; the two parts are separated bj the words mij brothers. EEFEEENCE TABLE OF ALL THE MOODS AND TENSES OF A VERB. Indicative. Potential. Present I love. I may, can, or must love. Past I loved. I might, could, would, or should love. Present perfect I have loved. I may, can, or must have loved. Past perfect I had loved. I might, could, would, or should have loved. Future I shall or will love. Future perfect I shall or will have loved. Subjunctive. Imperative. Infinitive. Participles. Present — {If) I love. Love (thou To love. Loving. or you). Past (7/)Iloved. Loved. Pres. perf..{Jf) I have loved, etc. To have loved. Having loved. Exercise 29. Tell the mood and the tense of each verb in the follow- ing sentences : 1. The village bell rings. 2. The storm has ceased. 3. She will remain, if you wish her to do so. 4. The merchant should have learned more caution. 5. The sovereigns requested of Columbus a recital of his adventures. 6. I have completed my twelfth year. 7. You had forgotten to give an answer. 8. We shall have left before they arrive. 9. Haste my father's heart to cheer. 10. The landlord would have acted in a different manner. 1 1 . My steps might break your rest. 12. Antwerp's monks may sing a mass for thy poor spearmen's souls. 13. Before Saturday I shall have matured all my plans. 14. Who steals my purse steals trash. 15. When you have learned this lesson, you may go home. PASSIVE VEEBS. 89 XXXII. PASSIVE VERBS. I wrote the letter. The letter was written by me. 1. In the first of these sentences the verb states that the subject (I) did something ; in the second, the verb represents something as done to the subject (the let- ter). 2. These reversible forms of representing the subject (as acting or being acted upon) are called the active voice and i\\Q passive voice. 3. The passive voice is formed by using the various parts of the verb he with the past participle of a verb. REFERENCE TABLE OF THE VERB BE. Present Tense. I am. He is. We ^ You > are. They ) Present Perfect. I 1 You We They J He has been. have been. Present Tense. I You He We They Indicative Mood. Past Tense. I He We You } were. They ) Past Perfect. I You shall or will be. He We They J Future Tense. I You He We They Future Perfect. I You had been. He We They J shall or will have been. Potential Mood. Past Tense. Pres. Perfect. Past Perfect. I You mayor jj^ can be. We They J I You lie would, or ^^Jq They J might, could. should be. I may or You ■ can liave He been. We They might, could, would, or should have been. 90 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Present Tense. If I If you If he If we If they ^be. Subjunctive Mood. Past Tense. If I If you If he \ were. If we If they Present Perfect Tense. If I If you If he If we If they ■ have been. Imperative Mood. Be. Infinitives. Present^ To be. Present^ Being. Past. To have been. Participles. Past^ Been. Perfect, Having been. 4. May any verb be made passive by using its past participle with tlie forms of the verb be? No; only those verbs that can take an object after them (transitive verbs) can be made passive. Exercise 30. By reference to the table, tell the oiiood and tense of each verb. 1. He was killed. 2. They have been deceived. 3. She had been seen. 4. You shall be beaten. 5. They will have been summoned. G. I am convinced of its truth. 7. The cord shall be cut above the knot. 8. Have you been taught music ? 9. Alfred was sheltered in the cot- tage of a poor cowherd. 10. He himself was accustomed to recite this stoiy in his happier hours. 11. The British troops were advancing from Portugal into Spain. 12. Yours has been forgotten. 13. Theirs will do. 14. Sir John Moore was wounded in the action by a cannon-ball. 15. He shall in that case be punished. 1 6. Time will have been wasted without any result. 17. Are you mistaken? 18. In a few minutes he would have been drowned. 19. By a series of criminal enterprises, the liberties of Europe had been extinguished. 20. Are you satisfied ? IRREGULAR VERBS. 91 XXXIII. IRREGULAR VERBS. 1. Regular verbs form their past tense (indicative) and past participle by suffixing ed to the present. Verbs that form these parts in some other way are called irreg- ular verbs. 2. The present tense, past tense, and past participle of a verb are called its principal parts, for the reason that, having these, we can easily form all the other parts of the verb. »^^ The irregular verbs are so very irregular that they should be com- mitted to memory. A complete list will be found in the supplement; but a few of the most important are here given. Present. Past. Past Part. Present. Past. Past Part. Break, broke. broken. Eat, ate. eaten. Forsake, forsook, forsaken. Freeze, froze. frozen. Take, took, taken. Speak, spoke. spoken. Wear, wore, worn. Begin, began. begun. Draw, drew. drawn. Drink, drank. drunk. Slay, slew, slain. Give, gave, given. Correct the foUoTTlng errors in verbs : 1. Peter's leg was broke. 2. Have you took any fish to-day? 3. We drinked a glass of wine. 4. Our horse drawed a heavy load. 5. I have never ate such nice gingerbread as this. G. Emma has not spoke to Jessie for a week. 7. We begun to think you were not coming. 8. The water was froze. II. Present. Past. Past Part. Present. Past. Past Part. Lie, lay, lain. Flee, fled, fled. Lay, laid. laid. Fly, flew. flown. Write, wrote. written. See, saw. seen. Know, knew. known. Rise, rose. risen. Come, came. come. Steal, stole. stolen. Catch, caught, caught. Sit, sat, sat. 92 LANGUAGE LESSONS. Correct the following errors in verbs : 1. John has wrote a letter. 2. The sun has rose. 3. I see him yes- terday. 4. The birds have flew away. 5. The eat catched a mouse. 6. The book lays on the table. 7. He laid on the sofa. 8. I knowed he had went. 9. The girl was seed going up the hill. 10. The hen sets on her eggs. 3. The scholar has often been told that I done it is bad English, and also that I have we7it is bad English. From what we have learned about verbs we shall be able to tell just io/it/ these and similar expressions are ungrammatical ; and when we know the reason why they are wrong, we must be particularly careful to avoid such errors. The "I done it" Blunder. 4. The principal parts of the verb do are : present tense, do ; past tense, did; past participle, do?ie. 5. The person who says I done it means to make a statement of past time, just as if he were to say^lwalked. Now the past tense of do is did ; hence the only way of making the statement intended is to say I did it. 6. The word do7ie is the past participle of the verb do; but a participle can not by itself make any state- ment at all ; so that I done it is utter nonsense. If you were to say, he gone to town, it would be just as sensible as to say I done it. 1. Tell, for the same reason, why "John druiik some water" is wrong. 2. Tell why " we seen an elephant" is bad English. The "I have -went" Blunder. Y. The mistake here is in using a past tense instead of a past participle to form a compound tense. The present perfect tense of the verb go is intended. 8. The principal parts of this verb are: present, ^o/ past, loejit ; past participle, gone. The compound tenses IREEGULAR VERBS. 93 are formed by the verb have with the past participle; hence the correct form is, I have gone, 1. Tell, for the same reason, why " I have saio " is incorrect. 2. Tell why this is wrong, "Jane has began to study German." Present for Past. 9. Another very common error in verbs is shown in these sentences: I come to town this morning. He come to my store. The sentences should be, "I came to town this morning;" "He came to ray store." Why? Because come is the present tense; whereas the past tense, came, is intended. Would it not be absurd to say, " I ^0 to town yesterday ?" Now "I come " is no better. Exercise 31. Correct the errors in verbs in the following sentences, and tell the nature of the mistakes: 1. Henry done his example in arithmetic correctly. 2. We seen her when she done it. 3. Where is Alice ? She has went to school. 4. I never drunk so much water before. .5. The horse has drank as much as he can. G. Louise has wrote many letters to her uncle. 7. That boy has broke his word. 8. I see him last week. 9. The circus come to town yesterday. 10. I knowed he would fall into the river. 11. The cat sprung out. 1 2. Peter has tore his new jacket. 1 3. That tree growed fast. 14. The coward has eat his own words. 15. The cannon has busted. 16. The ground is all froze over. 17. We begun to think it was a mistake, 18. The girl slep ten hours. 19. I have strove to do right. 20. This lace is beautifully wove. 94 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXIV. PHRASES WITH PARTICIPLES. 1. We have seen that there are two participles — the present and the past. It is important that we under- stand what partici]3les are, for they are used in making 2)hrases. 2. A participle is so called because it participates or shares partly in the nature of a verb, and partly of an adjective. A verb is a statement-word; but a partici- ple can only participate in making a statement. 1. The river is flowing. Here "is flowing" is a verb, and "flowing," the present participle, helps make this verb. 2. The riwei', flowing from the mountains, waters the plain. Here the participle "flowing " does not make any statement ; it is an adjective in this use, and "flowing from the mountains " is a phrase. 3. The Nile is knowii to rise in Abyssinia. Here the past participle "known" forms part of the verb is known. 4. The Nile, known to rise in Abyssinia, flows through Egypt. Here the past participle " known " makes no statement, and is really an adjective ; the expression " known to rise in Abyssinia " is a phrase. 3. A number of separate statements with participial phrases may be combined into a single sentence. Example 1. 1. The gallant soldier fell. 2. He was covered with loounds. By taking out from the second statement the phrase " covered with wounds," and fitting it into the first, we have this sentence : The gallant soldier fell, covered with wounds ; or, Covered with wounds, the gallant soldier fell. PIIKASES WITU PARTICIPLES. 95 Example 2. 1. We saw a beautiful landscape. 2. We had climhed to the top of the hill. 3. The landscape was stretched heloio us. The first is the principal statement. The other two statements are to be transformed into phrases. "We had climbed to the top of the hill " may be transformed into the phrase having climhed to the top of the hill. " Was stretched below" may be made into a phrase by leaving oiF the word "was." Combining these two phrases with the principal statement, we have the following sentence : Having climbed to the top of the hill, we saw a beau- tiful landscape stretched below us. Exercise 32. Combine each set of statements into a single sentence \iii\i phrases. The main statement comes first. 1. I lay down to rest. I was exhausted by fatigue. 2. Columbus saw an island. He saw it while gazing from the deck. The island was covered with a luxuriant forest. 3. The Laplander defies the severity of his native climate. He is wrapped up in deer-skins. 4. We diverged towards the prairie. We had left the line of march. We had traversed a small valley. 6. The most commercial city in the United States is New York. It is situated on an island. This island is called Manhattan Island. 6. There lay floating in the ocean an immense irregular mass. This mass was several miles oflf. Its top and points were covered with snow. Its centre was a deep indigo color. 7. Washington retired to Mount Vernon. He had freed his country from British rule. Let the teacher make ap additional groups to be combined. 96 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXV. CONJUNCTIONS. France and Switzerland are republics. I went because he asked me. 1. The word " and " makes one statement out of what would otherwise have had to be two : France is a repub- lic, Switzerland is a republic. The word " because " con- nects the two statements " I went" and *'he asked me" into one sentence. And and because are called conjunctions. 2. Definition. — A conjunction joins words to words, sentences to sentences, or shows the dependence of one statement upon another. illustrations. 1. Polly and Annie sing nicely. 2. The ship sails swiftly, although she is heavily laden. "And" is a conjunction, connecting statements by joining the two nouns of the subject, "Polly" and "Annie." "Although" intro- duces a dependent statement. 3. Definition.— Co-ordinate conjunctions connect words or statements of the same rank in a sentence. 4. There is another class of conjunctions, called sub- ordinate conjunctions. illustrations. 1. I will not go unless you accompany me. 2. I will help you, if you wish me. "Unless" is a conjunction, connecting the two statements "I will not go " and "you accompany me." "If" is a conjunction, connect- ing the two statements "I will help you" and "you wish me." CONJUNCTIONS. 97 5. Definition. — Subordinate conjunctions connect a qualifying or dependent statement with a principal state- ment. 6. The principal co-ordinate conjunctions are and^huty 01% therefore. The principal subordinate conjunctions are that, if, though, unless. Exercise 33. A. Name the conjunctio7is, and tell if they are co-ordinate or subordinate. 1. I went first, and he followed me. 2. Neither soldiers nor sailors could advance. 3. I will tell him if he ask me. 4. No harm was done, though the storm was very severe. 5. We loved him because he first loved us. 6. I did not know that your brother had hurt himself. B. Supply conjunctions, to connect the following state- ments : 1 . The clouds soon passed away, sunshine succeeded. 2. The wicked may prosper for a time, they will receive retviba* tion in the end. 3. Contentment is better riches. 4. He was gentle in manner, - — — resolute in action. 5. We shall improve we study. G. Life is so uncertain we should always be prepared for death. 1. Definition. — Interjections express sudden or strong feeling. Note. — Interjections are often followed by a punctuation-mark called the point of exclamation. 1. Lo ! yonder doth Earl Douglas come. 2. Alas ! what a loss we have suffered. 3. Oh ! they are not worth talking about. 4. Ah ! papa, I have found you out. 5. Well, what can I do for you ? 5 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXVI. REVIEW LESSOK. I.— The Parts of Speech. 1. Words are divided into eight classes, called the parts of speech. These are — 1. Nouns. 5. Adverbs. 2. Pronouns. 6. Prepositions. 3. Adjectives. 7. Conjunctions. 4. Verbs. 8. Interjections. I. Nouns are name -■words. II. Pronouns stand for nouns. III. Adjectives describe or limit things. IV. Verbs make statements. V. Adverbs describe actions and qualities. VI. Prepositions join -words. VII. Conjunctions connect -words or statements. VIII. Interjections express sudden and strong feeling. 2. Impoktant Dieection. — In telling the parts of speech, scholars must bear in mind that it is the nse of a -word that determines the class to which it belongs. The same word may be any one of two or three parts of speech, according to its 2ise in the sentence. Thus : 1. People that live in (/lass houses should not throw stones. The word "glass" in this sentence is an adjective, because it is used to describe the thing, ^^ houses." In the sentence, "Windows are made of glass," the same word is a noun, because in this use it is a name-word. 2. Sometimes we see a ship; sometimes we shij:^ a sea. The word "ship" in this sentence is, as used first, a noun, because it names a thing ; as next used, a verb, because it makes a statement. EEVIEW LESSON. 99 3. Without one if or hut. The words "if" and "but" are usually conjunctions; as here used they are nouns. 4. Come to me at four o'clock, that [conjunction] I may show you how to do that [adjective] puzzle that [pronoun] I got for you. As a rcTiew exercise, let the scholars open their Readers and tell the parts of speech in a number of pieces. II. — InjQection of "Words. 3. The same word may be used in various ways, to ex- press the same thing differently. But we must then alter the form of the word, to suit the intended change of thought. Such changes in the form of words are called inflections. 4. Five of the eight classes of words change their form, that is, are wflected. These are nouns, pronouns, adjec- tives, adverbs, and verbs. Three — prepositions, conjunc- tions, and interjections — are not inflected, that is, they undergo no change. 5. A noun is inflected to mark the plural number and the possessive case. For the mode of forming the plural of nouns, rcTicw Lessons IX., X., and XI. For the formation of the possessive case, reriew Lesson XYII. 6. Pronouns are changed to express person, number, gen- der, and case. (a.) The three persons — speaker, person spoken to, and person or thing spoken of— have different words to denote them. Thus : Jirst person, I ; second person, you ; third person, he, she, it. (6.) The plural of I is we ; of you (old form, thou^, is you ; of he, she, and it, is they. (c.) The third personal pronoun alone has different words for the genders — he being male, or masculine ; she, female, or feminine ; it, neuter — that is, neither gender — since it generally stands for a lifeless object. 100 LANGUAGE LESSONS. (c?.) Pronouns have three cases ; thus, nominative, he ; possessive, his ; objective, him. For the inflections of the pronouns, review Les- son XXV. 7. Adjectives and adverbs are inflected to express the comparative and the superlative degree. •^ The inflection for the comparative degree of adjectives and ad- verbs is the suffix er ; for the superlative degree, the suffix est. For the comparison of adjectives, review Lesson XIV. ; for the comparison of adverbs, review Lesson XVIII. 8. Verbs are inflected to mark the person and number of their subjects in only two instances, as seen on page 89. (1.) They are also inflected to mark the different tenses and par- ticiples. (2.) Ed is added to all regular verbs to form the past tense and the past participle. The past tense and the past participle of irregular verbs are formed in a great variety of ways. (3.) Ing is the inflection for the present participle of a// verbs. The other changes in verbs are made, not by inflections, but by the use of auxiliary words. Exercise 34. Tell the i7iflectio7is in the following words; give the simple form of the word, and tell the use of the inflection : Model. — Child's : apostrophe with s is an inflection added to the sim- ple form of the noun child^ and marks the possessive singular. 1. Boy's. 2. Sleeps. 3. Flowing. 4. Flowers. 5. Sweeter. 6. Pulled. 7. Children's 8. Nicest. 9. Piercing. 10. Given. 11. Horses'. 12. Rising. 13. Taxes. 14. Whitest. 15. Poured. 16. Coarser. 17. Blessed. 18. Girl's. 19. Ships. 20. Ship's. 21. Fishing. 22. Fishes. 23. Oxen's. 24. Fairest. 25. Lowlier. 26. Hallowed. 27. Skies. 28. One's. 29. Haunts. 30. Year's. 31. Hours. 32. His. 33. Faster. 34. Varnished. 35. Sheep's. 36. Coldest. 37. Loveliest. 38. Hurried. 39. Sleeping. 40. Heaven's. ANALYSIS OF SIMPLE SENTENCES.' 101 XXXVII. ANALYSIS OF SIMPLE SENTENCES. 1. A simple sentence makes a single statement, by means of one subject and one j)redicate. . 2. The analysis of a simple sentence consists in point- ing out the subject and the predicate, and the enlarge- ment or enlargements, if any, of the subject and of the predicate. 3. The simple subject of a simple sentence may be — 1. A noun ; 2. A pronoun ; 3. A phrase. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. Gold is a metal. WalJcing is good exercise. The subject of the first sentence is the noun "gold;" of the second, the noun " walking." 2. We hear the music. The subject is the pronoun "we." 3. To icaUc is good exercise. The subject is the phrase "to walk." 4. Fishing for trout is fine fun. The subject is the phrase "fishing for trout." Select tlie subjects in the follOTring simple sentences, and tell in regard to eacli If it is noun, pronoun, or purase : 1. The snow fell heavily. 2. Writing letters was her daily occupation. 3. We are brothers. 4. To forget an injury is the mark of a noble mind. 5. That day I oft remember. 6. Books are not dead things. 102' la!^guage lessons. 1. 'Tlip simple predicate' of a simple sentence will be either — 1. A verb by itself — if the verb is a complete verb. 2. A verb and its complement — if the verb is an in- complete verb. Note.— All transitive verbs — that is, verbs expressing an action that 2Jasses over to an object — are incomplete. Their complement is called the object. The verb be, and a few verbs that contain the sense of the verb be, as become, seem, feel, etc., take, as their complement, eitlier an adjec- tive (called predicate adjective^ or a noun (called predicate nomina- tive). 5. Ii> the sentence Birds siiig^ the verb " sing " is the predicate ; " sing " is a complete verb ; that is, it makes full sense by itself. 6. In the sentence Coliimhus discovered America, the simple predicate is "discovered America." The verb " discovered " alone does not form the predicate, because "Columbus discovered'''' does not make complete sense. "Discovered" is an incomi^lete verb. Y. The shy is blue. Here the simple predicate is "is blue." The verb he is an incomplete verb. 8. When the verb is an incomplete verb, the predicate consists of the verb and whatever word is necessary to fill out its sense. In tlie following sentences, point out tlio simple predicates. Tell vrhether the verb is complete or incomplete ; and if incomplete, tell rrliat is its com- plement. 1. The sun shines. 2. I like flowers. 3. He wishes to go. 4. Napoleon was chosen emperor. 5. The vessel sailed yesterday. 6. Glass is transparent. ANALYSIS OF SIMPLE SENTENCES. 103 Model of analysis — simple subject and predicate. 1. The birds sing. This is a simple sentence, because it contains only one subject and one predicate. The subject is the noun " birds." The predicate is " sing." 2. You are scholars. This is a simple sentence, because it contains only one subject and one predicate. The subject is the pronoun "you." The predicate is "are scholars." " Are " is an incomplete verb, and "scholars" is its complement. 3. To lie is disgraceful. This is a simple sentence, because it contains only one subject and one predicate. The subject is the phrase "to lie." The predicate is "is disgraceful." The verb "is" is incomplete, and the adjective " disgraceful " is its complement. 4. The fisherman brought a lobster. This is a simple sentence. The subject is "the fisherman." The predicate is "brought a lobster." The incomplete verb "brought" has for its complement the object " lobster." Exercise 35. A. Analyze the following sentences : 1. Waters ripple. 2. Washington fought. 3. Elizabeth was queen. 4. The dog fights. 5. Faust invented printing. G. Steel tarnishes. 7. To die for one's country is sweet. 8. Art refines. 9. Music soothes. 10. To forgive is divine. 11. We know him. 12. Charge ! B. . Write a simple sente7ice, containing a simple subject and predicate, on each of the following subjects. When done, analyze the sentences. 1. Winds. 3. Rain. 5. Wiieat. 2. Morning. 4. Snow. C. Night. 104 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXVIII. ANALYSIS-ENLARGED SUBJECT. 1. A noun, the simple subject of a simple sentence, may be enlarged by — 1. An adjective word. 2. An adjective ^Arase. 2. An adjective word may be^ — An adjective ; as, bright skies ; some books. A possessive noun ; as, the skjIi^s rays. A noun in apposition; as, Alexander, the copper- smith. 3. Adjective phrases are generally introduced by prep- ositions or by participles. Thus : 1. Men q/reno WW. [Phrase introduced by a /;re/?osi7/on.] 2. The balloon,^//ec? with gas, floated up in the air. [Phrase in- troduced by a participle.'] Model of Analysis. 1. Heavy rain falls. This is a simple sentence. The simple subject is "rain." The sub- ject is enlarged by the adjective "heavy." The simple predicate is " falls." It is not enlarged. 2. John's book is torn. This is a simple sentence. The simple subject is " book. " The sub- ject is enlarged by the adjective word "John's," in the possessive case. The predicate is "is torn." 3. The study of history improves the mind. This is a simple sentence. The simple subject is "study." The subject is enlarged by the adjective word "the," and by the adjective phrase " of history." The predicate is "improves the mind." ANALYSIS — ENLARGED SUBJECT. 105 4. Sailing across the Atlantic, Cabot readied Labra- dor. This is a simple sentence. The simple subject is "Cabot." The subject is enlarged by the adjective phrase "sailing across the Atlan- tic." The predicate is " reached Labrador. " Exercise 36. A. Analyze the following simple sentences, according to the previous model : 1 . Great men are rare. 2. The huntsman's horn awoke the echoes. 3. Franklin, the philosopher, was an American. 4. Many friends of my youth have perished. 5. The army, having crossed the Potomac, entered Maryland. 6. Exhausted by fatigue, we lay down. 7. The little bird's song is sweet. B. In the following sentences, enlarge the subject by means of adjective w^ords, adjective phrases, or both. Model. — The bridge spans the river. Enlarged — The great iron bridge, built by a skillful engineer, spans the river. 1 . The bridge spans the river. 2. The mechanic repaired the engine. 3. Snakes infest tiie country. 4. Milton wrote "Paradise Lost." 5. Birds fly. G. The fox stole the hens. 7. Bees gather honey. 8. Music soothes. 9. The fire bums. 10. The day is passed. 11. Humboldt is dead. 12. Books please me. 106 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XXXIX. ANALYSIS— ENLARGED PREDICATE. 1. A complete verb forming the predicate of a sen- tence is enlarged by — 1. An adverb. 2. An adverbial phrase. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. The horse ran swiftly. [Enlargement by an ad- verb.] ?,, Great men lived during the Bevolution. [Enlarge- ment by an adverbial phrase.] 2. A noun used as the complement of an incomplete verb may be enlarged by an adjective word or by an adjective phrase. Thus : 1. The rain has injured the growing crops. Here the noun "crops," which is the complement, or object, of the incomplete verb "injured," is enlarged by the adjective word "grow- ing." 2. The Egyptians embalmed the bodies of their dead. Here the noun "bodies," the object of "embalmed," is enlarged by the adjective phrase ' ' of their dead. " ">*• 3. We passed a shepherd tending his sheep. Here the noun " shepherd," object of "passed^" is enlarged by the adjective phrase "tending his sheep." Model of Analysis. "' ""i. The army advanced rapidly. This is a simple sentence. The subject is "the army" — not en- larged. The simple predicate is "advanced." The predicate is en- larged by the adverb "rapidly." ANALYSIS — ENLARGED PREDICATE. 107 2. A spirit haunts the year's last hours. This is a simple sentence. The subject is " a spirit." The simple pi-edicate is "haunts the hours." Tiie complement of "haunts " is the noun ' ' hours. " It is enlarged by the adjective words ' ' year's " and ' ' last. " 3. The sloth, in its wild state, passes its life on trees. This is a simple sentence. The simple subject is " the sloth." The subject is enlarged by the adjective phrase "in its wild state." The simple predicate is "passes its life." The predicate is enlarged by the adverbial phrase ' ' on trees. " Exercise 37. A. Analyze the following simple sentences : 1 . Rich men should give liberally. 2. The horn of the hunter is heard on the hill. 7^3. My dear mother will soon be here. -fA. The squirrel eyes askance the chestnuts browning. 5. Heaven from all creatures hides the book of fate. 6. Some birds of prey, having secured their victim, fly with it very swiftly to their nests. B. In the following sentences, enlarge the predicate by- means of adverbs, adverbial phrases, or both. Model. — We go to swim. Enlarged — ^We often go to swim in the river. 1. We go to swim. 2. The moon shines. 3. They learn their lessons. 4. The American soldiers fought. 5. James wrote a letter. 6. It is pleasant to watch the stars. 7. We took shelter. 8. The fire burns. 9. Bees gather honey. 10. The microscope shows us animalculcc. 11. Birds fly. 12. Fishes swim. 108 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XL. REVIEW OF PUNCTUATING SIMPLE SENTENCES. 1. The comma and the terminal mark (period, point of interrogation, and point of exclamation) are the only marks used in punctuating simple sentences. The Terminal Mark. 2. Close a declarative sentence with tlie period, an in- terrogative sentence with the interrogation-point, and an exclamatory sentence with the point of exclamation. It is cold to-day. Is it cold to-day ? How cold it is to-day ! The Comma. Rule I. — ^Words of the same class in a series, taken in- dividually or in pairs, are separated hy commas. The calm, cool, resolute man presented a noble example of daring. Russia exports icheat, tallow, flax, and hides. Note.— But two co-ordinate words joined by and or or are not to be separated. Rule II. — A phrase, unless very closely connected with the word to which it belongs, is to be marked off by a comma. 1. In sjnte of all difficulties, they resolved to make the attempt. 2. The Indian monarch, stunned and bewildered, saw his faithful subjects falling around him. But in the sentence, *' Our house is beautifully situated about three miles from town," the phrase, about three REVIEW OF PUNCTUATING SIMPLE SENTENCES. 109 miles from town is too closely joined in construction to be separated by a comma. Rule III. — In a succession of phrases, each phrase is to he marked off by a comma. At daybreak, the combined fleets were distinctly seen from the Victory's head, /brmec? in a close liiie of battle ahead^on the starboard tacJc^about tioelve miles to leeward, and standing to the south. Rule IV. — Adverbs like however, indeed, there- fore, etc., being equivalent to phrases, are generally marked off by commas. The story, however, was pronounced untrue. No man, indeed, is always happy. Rule V.— Words or phrases in apposition are marked off by commas. James Watt, the improver of the steam-engine, was a native of Greenock. Washington, commander-in-chief of the American army, won the battle of Trenton. Exercise 38. Punctuate the following simple sentences : 1. Washington was blessed with a sound understanding an intrepid spirit a benevolent heart 2. In our present advanced state it is a disgrace not to be able to write good English 3. In carrying a barometer from the level of the Thames to the top of St. Paul's Church in London the mercury falls half an inch marking an ascent of about five hundred feet 4. How sad how dreary how desolate is this scene 5. Is it not pleasant in the morning to brush the dew upon the upland lawn 6. Milton the author of ' ' Paradise Lost " was blind 7. The signal being given the fleet weighed anchor 8. The grocer sells tea coffee sugar and spices 9. On the rich and the eloquent on nobles and princes the Puritans looked down with contempt 110 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XLI. REVIEW OF MAKING SIMPLE SEN- TENCES. 1. In the previous lessons -vve have learned all that goes to make up a simple sentence. 2. A simple sentence contains but a single statement, and therefore it can have only one subject and one pred- icate. 3. A sentence, however, may be simple, and still con- tain a great many words. This is because the simple subject — the noun — may be enlarged by words and by phrases, and the simple predicate — the verb — may be enlarged in the same way. Birds fly. This is a simple sentence in its briefest form. Some birds of prey, having secured their victim, fly with it very swiftly to their nests. This is still a simple sentence, but both subject and predicate arc enlarged by words and phrases. 4. By way of practice and review, we shall now have an exercise in building up simple sentences. 1. A balloon is a hag. 2. It is a thin bag. S. It is a light bag. 4. It is made of varnished silk. 5. It is generally shaped like a globe. 6. It is filled with a fluid lighter than common air. Separate State- ^ ments rA BALLOON IS A ihin,{^) ligMQ) bag, made of Combined i varnished silk,(*) generally shaped like a I globe,(^) Siiid Jilled with a Jluid lighter than L common air.(^) In the combined form, this is a simple sentence, for the reason that it contains but one subject, *'a balloon," and one predicate, "is a Separate State- ^ ments REVIEW OP MAKING SIMPLE SENTENCES. Ill bag." The second statement, "it is a thin bag," contributes to the first — which is the main or skeleton statement — a single word, "thin ;" the third statement adds to the main statement another particular, ex- pressed by the single word "light;" the fourth adds a phrase, "made of varnished silk;" the fifth adds another joArase, "generally shaped like a globe;" and the sixth still another phrase, "filled with a fluid lighter than common air." 1. Columbus returned to Spain. 2. He returned in 1493. 3. He had spent some months in exploring the delightful regions. 4. These regions were now first thrown open to European eyes. {In 1493, Columbus returned to Spain, having spent some months in exploring the delight- ful regions now first thrown open to Euro- pean eyes. 6. The reverse of synthesis^ or building up detached statements into a simple sentence, is rhetorical analysis^ that is, writing in separate sentences the dijBTerent state- ments implied in the original sentence. Thus — Goldsmith, the author of the "Deserted Village," wrote with perfect elegance and beauty, in a style of mellow tenderness and elaborate simplicity. This sentence may be resolved into the following statements : 1. Goldsmith wrote with perfect elegance. 2. Goldsmith was the author of the " Deserted Vil- lage." 3. He wrote with perfect beauty. 4. He wrote in a style of mellow tenderness. 5. He wrote in a style of elaborate simplicity. 6. Pupils should learn, first of all, to express their thoughts in simple sentences. School-boys and school- girls often fall into the habit of writing long, loose, ill. constructed sentenced In order to form the habit of clear composition, remember the following : Rule. — Do not combine disconnected statements by means of conjunctions or relative pronouns; hut write 112 LANGUAGE LESSONS. short sentences, each expressing a complete thought. And whenever you have written a very long, involved sentence, break it up into two or more brief and clear sentences. 7. The following is a single sentence taken from the exercise of a pupil : Peter Yacaro an Italian who lived in South Amer- ica, had a monkey which was so well trained that he would do any thing that he told him, so one day he told him to go to the market and bring some meat and the monkey done as he was told, got the meat and hurried home. This would be improved very much by breaking it up, and making a few slight changes — thus : Peter Vacaro, an Italia»n who lived in South Amer- ica, had a monkey which was so well trained that he would do any thing his master bade him do. One day he w^as told to go to the market and bring some meat. The monkey did as he -was ordered : he got the meat and hurried home. Exercise 39. A. Combine the following groups of statements so that each group shall form a simple sentence : 1. New York is a great city. It is a commercial city. It is situated on New York Bay. It is situated at the mouth of the Hudson River. 2. I have a dress. It is a pretty dress. It is a blue dress. It is made of silk. It is cut in the latest fashion. It is trimmed with lace. 3. Charles XII., of Sweden, was defeated. He was defeated at Pultowa. It was by Peter the Great he was defeated^ Peter the Great was Czar of Russia. REVIEW OF MAKING SIMPLE SENTENCES. 113 4. The house was burned. It was a white house. The house was on the hill. It had a beautiful garden. 5. The smugglers came to the hcrmiCs cell. They came on the third day. They came by the direction of the peasants. C. The Federalists secured the election of John Adams. Washington had refused to be re-elected President. Adams was a leading member of the Federalist party. He was already distinguished by his political services during the Eevolution. Exchange papers, and write letters of criticism. Notice— 1. Is the sentence a simple sentence? 2. Are there any mistakes of spelling? 3. Is the punctuation correct ? 4. Are the phrases arranged in the best possible manner ? 5. Has the sentence any other fliults? Can you improve it in any way ? B. Break up each of the following long sentences into a number of brief, clear sentences, making any needed cor- rections. (These sentences are from actual compositions.) 1. One day I took Gip out to let him run and he saw a cat and the cat stuck up her tail and scratched him on the nose and ran away and he will never go near a cat again. 2. The first locomotive was invented in 1802 by Richard Trevethick, but could only draw a light load at the slow rate of five miles an hour, and thence, step by step, they became more elaborate, stronger, and faster until now they are beautiful specimens of workmanship, and al- most any day you can see a locomotive dragging after it so long a train of cars that it would seem it were impossible for the locomotive to stir it, and now they attain the almost incredible speed of sixty miles an hour, and I saw in a paper that a train bearing relief to the Boston, some time since, made better time than that, being the fastest on record. 3. There are a. great many difi'erent kinds of trees, some furnishing us with wood for common purposes, such as flooring for our houses and frames for the windows, while others afford us more beautiful wood, which, when polished, is made into tables and chairs and various arti- cles of furniture. 114 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XLH. CONSTRUCTION OF NOUNS. (1.) Nouns as Subjects. 1. The usual place of a nonn used as the subject of a sentence is before the verb ; as, A messenger was sent. But in certain cases this order is inverted — 1. When, for the sake of emphasis, some other important word or phrase is put first; as, (a.) Never will a patriot consent to so dishonor- able a proceeding ; (6.) In came his father just as he was writing to him; (c.) In the beginning was the Word. 2. In sentences which report a dialogue, as, said he, replied I, and the like ; as. Come, said my friend^ make haste ! 3. In interrogative and in imperative sentences ; as. Are you there ? Name the subjects in the following sentences, and show in what respect their place is not the usual one. 1. Down fell the house with a great crash. 2. Great is Diana of the Ephesians. 3. Then rose from sea to sky the wild farewell. 4. "What will become of the poor sheep?" thought she. 5. Has an answer yet been received ? 6. May he be happy ! (2.) Use of the Possessive Form. William's share was five thousand dollars. Mary's share was five thousand dollars. 2. If we combine these sentences, we shall have : Will- iam's and Mary's share was five thousand dollars. But suppose we wish to say, not that each separately had five thousand dollars, but that the share of both together was five thousand dollars; we must then write, William and Mary's share was five thousand dollars. Rule. — In a series of possessive nouns, if separate own- ership is meant, write each noun with the possessive sign ; if joint ownership, use the sign with the last only. CONSTEUCTION OF NOUNS. 116 Tell in which sentence joint OTrnershlp in meant, and in wliich separate ownership. 1. Have you read any of Beauraoiit and Fletcher's plays ? 2. Have you read any of Shaksj)eare's and Jonson's plays ? 3. We admire Scott's genius. 3. In the sentence, "VVe admire Scott's genius, sup- pose we wish to add to " Scott's " the explanatory noun the 7iovelisty how shall we write the sentence ? We admire Scott's the novelist's genius. We admire Scott's, the novelist, genius. We admire Scott the novelist's genius. The last form is the correct one. Rule. — When two possessives are in apposition, the last alone takes the possessive sign. Note.— In all such cases, however, it is much better to turn the sentences thus : We admire the genius of Scott, the novelist. 4. The foUowinsT construction is bad Ensrlish : Jbh7i going was unexpected. The reason of him being there is unknown. These sentences should be — John^s -going was unexpected. The reason oUiis being there was unknown. (3.) Nouns as Objects. 5. Nouns are generally placed after the verbs of which they are the objects ; as, The merchant has built a house. But if we wish to be emphatic, we place the object first; as, My rigJit there is none to dispute = There is none to dispute my right. Name the objects in the following sentences, and state what is unusual in their position. 1 . That picture I have sold, but I will show your friend another. 2. Can honor's voice the silent dust provoke ? 3. The baker he hanged. 4. The liar we can not respect. 5. The poor ye have always with you. 116 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XLIII. now TO PARSE NOUNS. The noun [naming it, and telling whether it is proper or common, singular or plu- 1. Subject < ral] is subject of such and such a verb [naming it], because it is that of which a statement is made by the verb. The army suffered defeat. " Army " is a common noun, singular number, and sub- ject of the verb " suffered," because it is that of which the statement, " suffered defeat," is made. In tlie following sentences, parse the noun-subjects : 1 . Fishes are covered with scales. 2. A wise son maketh a glad father. 3. From crag to crag leaps the live thunder. 4. The horse is a quadruped. r The noun [naming it, and telling whether 2. Object -| proper or common, singular or plural] I is object of the verb [naming it]. Columbus discovered America. "America" is a proper noun, singular, and is object of the verb " discovered." In the following sentences, parse the noun-ol)jects : 1. The cat followed the girl. 2. A man killed a tigress. 3. Fulton invented the steamboat. 4. The people saw the gyint. fThe noun [naming it, etc.] is in apposi- 3. Apposition J tio^^^^i^h the noun or pronoun [naming ^^ I It], because it denotes the same person or [ thing. Washington, the 2^citriot, was born in Virginia. "Patriot " is a common noun, singular, and is in apposi- tion w^ith "Washington," since it denotes the same person. HOW TO PARSE NOUNS. 117 In the following sentences, parse the nouns in apposition : 1. Milton, the English poet, wrote "Paradise Lost." 2. The Christians were persecuted by Nero, the infamous emperor. 3. That useful animal, the camel, is found in Asia and Africa. {The noun [naming it, etc.] is the pred- icate nominative after the verb he, and explains the subject [naming it]. Washington was ti patriot. "Patriot" is a common noun, singular, in the predicate nominative after " was," and explains the subject, "Wash- ington." In the follomng sentences, parse the noans in the predicate nominative : 1. Iron is a metal. 2. Franklin was a printer. 3. In a few years we shall be men. /•The noun [naming it, etc.] is in the 5. Possessive j possessive case, and limits the noun I [naming it]. The hoys' slates are broken. "Boys" is a common noun, plural, possessive case, and limits the noun " slates." In the following sentences, parse the nonns in the possessive case : 1. The beggar's rags may cover a noble heart. 2. The girl's slate broke, and the children's toys were lost. 3. Who soiled the horse's saddle ? 4. The hero's harp and the lover's lute are silent. fThe noun [naming it, etc.] is linked by J the preposition [naming it] to such 6. Phrase Use i and such a word, and forms a phrase, [ adjective or adverbial. The man with the white coat cameyrom London. " Coat " is a common noun, singular, and is linked by the preposition "with" to the noun "man:" "with the white coat" is an adjective phrase. 118 LANGUAGE LESSONS. "London" is a proper noun, singular, and is linked by the preposition "from" to "came:" "from London" is an adverbial phrase. Note. — Nouns denoting time, space, or quantity may be parsed as phrases. The preposition in such cases is understood. The travelers had ridden forty miles (that is, over forty miles). The table is worth ten dollars (that is, is of the value of ten dollars). In the folloiring sentences, parse the nouns used in phrases : 1. The boy in the boat caught a fish with a line. 2. The child met me on the road. 3. A sailor at sea looks hopefully for land. 7. Independent i^^'^ "°^" (^""^""^"S it, etc.] is used inde- ^ ( pendently. Our Father^ who art in heaven. "Father" is a proper noun, singular, and is used inde- pendently by address. The mist having arisen, a beautiful prospect was disclosed. "Mist" is a common noun, singular, and is used inde- pendently in the phrase " the mist having arisen." In the foUoTring sentences, parse the nouns independent : 1. Oh mighty Ca3sar ! dost thou lie so low ? 2. Columbus having finished the account of his voyage, the sover- eigns sank upon their knees. 3. Speak, marble lips ! 4. The battle being ended, the general counted his loss. Exercise 40 A. t^arse all the nouns in tbe following sentences : 1. James roasted the apples. 2. The source of the Nile has been discovered by no one yet. 3. Coal-fields are the remains of vast forests. 4. The patriot's heart bled. 5. Warren Avas a patriot. HOW TO PARSE NOUNS. 119 6. Death, where is thy sting ? 7. God moves in a mysterious way, His wonders to perform : He plants liis footsteps in the sea. And rides upon the storm. B. Read aloud the following piece ; then write out an ab- stract from memory, and parse all the 7iouns : FROZEN WORDS.— [Addison.] We were separated by a storm in the latitude of 73° ; but finally our ship got safe into a creek of Nova Zembla. We landed, in order to refit our vessel and obtain a store of provisions. The crew made themselves a cabin of turf and wood, to fence themselves from the cold, which was severe beyond imagination. We soon observed that in talking to one another we lost several of our words, and could not hear one another at above two yards' distance, even when we sat very near the fire. The reason was that our words froze in the air before they could reach the ears of the person to whom they were spoken. As the cold increased, the whole company grew dumb, or rather deaf; for each man knew he spoke as well as ever, but the sounds were condensed and lost. We con- tinued here three weeks in this dismal plight. At length the air about us began to thaw. Our cabin was immediately filled with a dry, clatter- ing sound, which I afterward found to be the crackling of consonants that broke above our heads, and were often mixed with a gentle hissing, that I imputed to the letter s, which occurs so frequently in the English tongue. This was soon followed by syllables and short words, and at length by entire sentences, that melted sooner or later, as they were more or less congealed; so that we now heard every thing that had been spoken during the whole three weeks. It was now very early in the morning, and yet, to my surprise, I heard somebody say, " Captain, it is midnight, and time for the ship's crew to go to bed." This I knew to be the pilot's voice ; and upon recollecting myself, I concluded that he had spoken these words to me some days before, though I could not hear them before the present thaw. Presently we heard a volley of oaths and curses, uttered in a very hoarse voice, which I knew belonged to the boatswain, who was a very choleric fellow, and had been cursing and swearing at me when he thought I could not hear. Half a mile from our cabin we heard a bear's groanings, which at first startled us ; but we soon learned that he was dead and lay in salt, having been killed about a fortnight before. 120 LANGUAGE LESSONS. XLIV. CONSTRUCTION OF ADJECTIVES. (1.) The Article. 1. When two or more nouns or adjectives refer to the same thing, the article is prefixed to the first only ; but if they refer to diff*erent things, the article should be re- peated with each. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. The governor and coraraander-in-chief has arrived (that is, one person). 2. The governor and the commander-in-chief have arrived (that is, two persons). 3. He lives in a long and narrow street (one street). 4. The rich and the poor have a common interest (two classes). Show the application of this rule in the foUoTring sentences : 1. The ox and the sheep are the domestic animals chiefly used for food. 2. Benjamin Franklin, the philosopher arid statesman, lived in Philadelphia. 3. The three brothers were under a large and spreading tree. 4. I passed a man and a boy on my way to the village. 5. Bishop Butler is a better reasoner than writer.. G. I saw a red, white, and blue flag. Here is a white and a red flag. (2.) Comparison. 2. The comparative is used when two objects are com- pared ; the superlative, when more than two. Hence — Rule. — Never use the superlative when but two objects are compared. CONSTRUCTION OF ADJECTIVES. 121 The Euphrates and the Tigris are rivei-s of Asia : of these, the Euphrates is the larger^ and the Tigris the more rapid. It would be wrong to say, The Euphrates is the largest ; The Tigris the most rapid. Why is this sentence incorrect — This is the best house of the two ? (3.) Position of Adjectives. 3. An adjective generally precedes its noun ; as, a loise man ; a great and wise man. But it may follow it for emphasis or in poetic construction ; as, a man wise and good ; a man he was to all the country dear. (4.) Adjectives for Adverbs. 4. A few verbs containing the meaning of the verb be can take a predicate adjective instead of an adverb. 1. The rose smells sweet. 2. The velvet feels smooth. 5. It would be incorrect to say, The rose smells sweetly; The velvet feels smoothly. The verb he is in the verbs smells and feels. The rose does not really smelly and the velvet does not really y^e^. It is only living beings that can do these things. What these sentences mean is, that the rose is sweet to the scent, and that the velvet is smooth to the feel. Note.— la parsing, notice that there arc a few verbs like 1. Smell. 3. Look. 5. Become. 3. Feel. 4. Taste. 6. Grow. That these verbs all have the verb he in them, and that these verbs take a predicate adjective, whereas all ordinary verbs take adverbs. Would you say, "Miss Smith looks heautiftdly f^"* [Adverb.] Why not ? Would you say, " The lemon tastes sourly f"* Why not ? 6 122 LANGUAGE LESSONS. (5.) Parsing of Adjectives. 6. An adjective is parsed by saying that it describes or limits the noun [naming it]. 7. A predicate adjective is parsed by saying that it is the predicate adjective, and describes the subject of the verb. Model. — What an excellent thing is knowledge. "Excellent" is an adjective, and describes the noun "thing." The way w^as long. " Long " is a predicate adjective after the verb " was," and describes the subject, " way." Exercise 41. A. Parse the adjectives in the following sentences : 1. The long grass of the American prairies sometimes catches fire. 2. There are high mountains and deep valleys in^ Switzerland. 3. The best fruits grow in warm countries. 4. The way was long, the wind was cold, The minstrel was infirm and old. 5. Water is transparent. 6. The fields look brown, 7. Silk-worms are curious and industrious little creatures. 8. I heard this wonderful story when I was a little girl. 9. This house is colder ]-han yours. 10. The ostrich is the largest [bird] of birds. B. Correct the errors in adjectives. 1. Which is the oldest of these two boys? 2. The fields look greenly. 3. The dog smells disagreeably. 4. Emilie is the brightest of my two daughters. 6. This cake tastes sweetly. 6. Mary sings sweet. MISUSED ADJECTIVES. 123 XLV. MISUSED ADJECTIVES. (1.) These for this. 1. The adjective this must be used only with singular nouns ; these with plural nouns. This rule is violated in such expressions as " these sort of people," " those kind of horses." We must say, " this sort of people," " that kind of horses." (2.) Them for these. 2. The personal pronoun them is frequently used, for the adjective those; as, '■^them things," meaning ''^ those things." The word, "them" is the object-form of the pronoun " they ;" hence it can not be used, as an adjec- tive. We might as well say " him carriage," " him nose," for " his carriage," " his nose." (3.) This here. 3. The use of this here, and of that there^ instead of this and that, is incorrect. The word this expresses all that can be denoted by " this here," and that expresses all that can be denoted by " that there." (This way of speaking is a sure sign of a want of education in th^ person using it.) (4.) High-sounding Adjectives. 4. The pupils may write on slates or on paper the fol- lowing adjectives : Awful. Splendid. Frightful. Tremendous. Horrible. Dreadful. 5. These are all good English adjectives. It is per- fectly proper to use them when we use them rightly. But 124 LANGUAGE LESSONS. these words, and some others like them, are very often abused by careless children and grown people. 6. " Awful " means inspiriiig awe. We may say of a thunder-storm that it was awful^ and this would be per- fectly proper, because a thunder-storm is awe-inspiring. 7. Would it be proper to speak of an " awful lot of fun?" or of an ''^awfully hard lesson?" Certainly not. There is nothing awe-inspiring in either of these things. The person who uses such expressions means merely that there was a great deal of fun, and that the lesson was '^ery hard. 8. Rule.— Never use an adjective larger in meaning than the idea that you wish to express. ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. The heat was perfectly /r^^A(/^<?. In most cases, all that is meant by the above is that the heat was very great^ or very oppressive, or simply that it was verr/ hot. 2. When we got to the hotel we had a horrible dinner. " Horrible " signifies something that strikes us with horror ; and a dinner would need to be a repast like a cannibal's to deserve the name of horrible. Probably the statement, We had a very had dinner, would fully describe its degree of badness. Exercise 42. Correct the errors in the following sentences : 1. Them apples are sour. 2. That 'ere horse is blind of one eye. 3. Those sort of people are always complaining. 4. Writing letters is an abominable nuisance. 5. Grandmother was some better last night. 6. Them boys are making an awful racket. 7. We saw a tremendously big spider. 8. The music was awfully gorgeous. 9. Hand me them slates. 10. He finds it more simpler to take your plan. LESSON ON THE AGEEEMENT OF VERBS. 125 XLVI. LESSON ON THE AGREEMENT OF VERBS. 1. In most grammars, the rule for verbs is that they must agree with their subjects in number and person. 2. In practice, this rule means that when we use the present tense of a verb with a noun, subject of the singu- lar number, or with a personal or a relative pronoun of the third person singular, the verb must take an 5. 3. It also means that we must be very careful with a few very irregular forms, remembering that has, does, goes, and is are used with subjects of the third person singular, and have, do, go, and are with all other sub- jects. The reason why we must be particular with these irregular verbs is because they are used very much in helping to form the various tenses of all verbs. 4. The scholar knows by this time that such expres- sions as the horses runs, the boys has gone to school, the dog walk, are wrong, and why they are wrong. Proba- bly all attentive scholars have learned to avoid such mis- takes. But there are other forms of expression that are not so simple as these. 5. The first difficulty in using these verbs correctly oc- curs lohen the subjects have qualifying phrases. ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. The union of two great rivers produces the La Plata. 126 LANGUAGE LESSONS. The verb is "produces ;" the subject is " union." " Union" is in the singular number, and hence "produces" is rightly in the singular number, to agree with it. True, the adjective phrase, " of two great rivers," comes after the word "union;" and the mere sound of the word "rivers," coming just before the verb, might make careless speakers think that the verb should be plural— produce. But the real subject is "union;" and the word "rivers" can have nothing to do with the form of the verb, because " rivers " is used with a prep- osition, to form an adjective phrase, and hence it has no control over the subject of the verb. 2. The condition of the roads are horrible. The real subject of the verb is the noun "condition," which is sin- gular. The verb, therefore, should be is — the condition is. The phrase " of the roads," being a mere qualifier, has no control over the form of the verb. 6. Rule. — When a subject has qualifying words or phrases, select the real subject, and make the form of the verb agree with that, without reference to the qualifying words or phrases. Exercise 43. A. What word is the real subject in these sentences ? 1 . The direction of the mountains was towards the south. 2. The store, with all the goods in it, was destroyed. 3. None of our children like tomatoes. 4. Six months' interest seems to be due. 5. The mechanism of clocks and watches were then unknown (wrong). 6. A variety of circumstances are to be taken into account (wrong). B. What phrase in each of the preceding sentences might lead a careless speaker into making a mistake in the form of the verb ? Model. — Six months' interest seems to be due. The verb is " seems," in the singular number. It agrees with its subject," interest." The word "months' " has no control over the form of the verb, because that word is in the possessive case, and limits "interest." VERBS WITH TWO SUBJECTS. 127 XLVIL VERBS WITH TWO SUBJECTS. (1.) Two Nouns joined by "and." 1. Sometimes the subject of a verb consists of two or more singular nouns. Thus : 1. The horse, the ox, and the deer «re quadrupeds. 2. Grace and^ Gertrude have recited their lessons. 3. Gold and silver are precious metals. 2. In the first sentence the subject consists of three singular nouns, connected by " and." What are they ? The subject of the second sentence is two singular nouns, connected by '/ and." What are they ? The subject of the third sentence is two singular nouns. What are they ? 3. Rule.— Two or more singular subjects, meaning dif- ferent persons or things, and joined by and, take a verb in the plural. *** Even a single noun, if it denotes more than one thing, as trees^ men^ houses, requires a verb in the plural. In the same manner, if we unite two or more singular names by and, there is plurality of subject, and, of course, the verb must be plural. 4. Exceptions. — There are some apparent exceptions to the rule. • ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. A gentleman and scholar lives here. Explanation. — This means that one person, who is both a "gen- tleman " and a *' scholar," lives here. Thus there is but one person spoken of; and notwithstanding that we give him two different names, the verb is in the singular number, for the reason that the verb makes a statement of a subject, and not of its names. 2. Why is dust and ashes proud ? The "is" is correct, because we are really speaking of one thing," namely, "man." 128 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 3. The boy, and not the dogs, is to blame. The verb "is" is correct. The sentence really makes two state- ments — the boy is to blame ; the dogs are not to blame. But as one subject is singular and the other plural, ^vc can not make both state- ments by means of one verb. Hence \\q make the verb agree in number with the affirmative subject, and leave the correct form of the verb to be understood with the negative subject. 4. Every tree and every shrub is in bloom. The rule in such cases is that when two or more singular subjects joined by and are described by the adjectives each^ every ^ or wo, the verb takes the singular form. (2.) Two Nouns joined by "or" or "nor." 5. Rule.— Two or more singular subjects joined by or or NOE require a verb in the singular. illustrations. 1. John or his brother has the book. The two singular subjects are "John" and "his brother." They are separated by "or," and hence, as we really make the statement of only owe, the verb "has " is singular. 2. Either Anne or Jane tell a falsehood. You observe that the verb ' ' tell " is the plural forai. But this is wrong : the statement is made of but one, and hence the verb should be singular — tells a falsehood. 6. Sometimes one of the subjects separated by or or nor is singular and the other plural. In this case the verb is made to agree with its nearest subject. Thus — He or his friends are to blame. Exercise 44. Correct the errors in the form of the verhs in the fol- lowing sentences : 1. Pines and firs grows in Norway and Sweden. 2. My friend and companion are dead. 5. The general, but not the soldiers, have arrived. 4. Neither silk nor tea are produced in this country. T). Where is the hopes or the vigor of youth ? 6. Were Webster or Clay ever president ? LESSON ON "THERE IS " AND "THERE ARE." 129 XLYIII. LESSOX ON "THERE IS" AND "THERE ARE." 1. Shall we say " there is " or " there are .^" This de- pends entirely on what comes after is or are. 1 . There are apples on the tree. 2. There is water in the milk. 3. There is a peck of potatoes in the pantry. 4. There are many flowers born to blush unseen. 5. There is a pleasure in the pathless wood. 2. Let us now see why we say is or are in each case. 1. There are apples on the tree — because the plural noun, " apples," coming after " are," is its subject. 2. There is water in the milk — because the subject is the singular noun, " water." 3. There is a peck of potatoes in the pantry — because the subject is the noun "peck," which is singular; it matters not that we speak of a peck " of potatoes," because " of potatoes " is a mere phrase, and can have no influence on the number of the subject. 4. There are many flowers born to blush unseen — because the subject is the plural noun, " flowers." 5. There is a pleasure in the pathless woods — be- cause the subject is the noun " pleasure," which is in the singular number. 3. Thus we clearly see that whether we shall say there is or there are depends entirely on the number of the real subject. 4. Now what is the little word " there ?" If we say, " The book is there^^ the word "there" is an adverb. But " there," in the use shown in the sentences given above, is not an adverb. Thus — 2Viere came to the beach a poor exile of Erin. 6* 130 LANGUAGE LESSONS. This is the same as if we should say, A poor exile of Erin came to the beach. In all such cases the word there serves to introduce the statement, while the real subject comes after the verb. It may be called an introductory particle. *^* This is a kind of expression peculiar to the English language ; and expressions peculiar to a particular language are called idioms. This construction, therefore, is an idiom ; and it is a very good idiom, because it enables us to give variety to our way of stating things. Thus, in place of saying, " A fairy prince once upon a time existed," ■vve can say, " There was once upon a time a fairy prince," which is an agreeable mode of turning the sentence. 5. The same rule that applies to " there ^s" and " there are^^ applies to all verbs used in the same idiomatic way with there. The verb must agree with the real subject, which will be found after the verb. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. There have been hundreds of people here to-day. 2. There was a man whose name was John. 3. There were two millions of soldiers in Xerxes's army. 4. There seem to be boys who are never contented. 5. There lives an old woman in Swampscott. 6. There's (= there is) a divinity that shapes our ends. Exercise 45. Correct the following verhs : 1 . There's many men who can not read. 2. There are a great difference in the dispositions of people. 3. There was ten thousand men killed at Waterloo. 4. Live there a man with soul so dead ? o. There appears to be many who will not be promoted. 6. There is two or three apples on the table. 7. In fact, there is no servants in the house. 8. There are, indeed, a great number in attendance. 9. There were a shoal of herrings. 10. There was many fires last year. SYNTAX OF PEONOUNS. 131 XLIX. SYNTAX OF PRONOUNS. (1.) Agreement of Pronouns. 1. Pronouns stand for nouns. Hence in using pro- nouns we must be very careful that we use the right pronouns, and also that we use them rightly. 2. Rule. — A pronoun must he of the same numher as the noun it is meant to represent; as, "The man is sick: he has a fever ;" " The men are foolish, because they waste their money." 3. Rule. — When two or more singular. nouns are joined by and, the pronoun used to represent them must be plural; but when separated by or or nor the pronoun must be singular. Thus, " Whales and elephants are mammals : they suckle their young." " When he sees a dog or a cat, he chases z^." 4. Rule. — Collective nouns require singular or plural pronouns according as they convey the idea of unity or plurality. Thus, " Congress [idea of unity] meets in De- cember, and it will adjourn in March." "The people [idea of plurality] have disagreed, and they will con- tinue to quarrel." *^* When one or more nouns are preceded by the words each, every, either, or no, the nouns are considered singular, and must be represented by singular pronouns. Correct the mistakes in the pronouns 1. Both AVebster and Clay loved his country. 2. Every man is the architect of their own fortune. 3. The army dragged themselves along through the mud. 4. Every boy and ghi must learn their lesson. 5. The dog is a faithful animal when their master is kind to them. 6. Anv bodv in their senses would have known better. 132 LANGUAGE LESSONS. (2.) Pronouns as Subjects. 5. Rule. — When a pronoun is used as tlie subject of a verb, it must take the subject-form. 6. We should say, I go to town; He takes a walk. And not, Me go to town ; Him takes a walk. 1. Now it is not at all likely that any person would say, "Jfe go to town;" ^'•Him takes a walk;" but care- less people are constantly committing mistakes that are nearly as bad. ILLUSTBATIONS. 1. Richard is taller than me. 2. Mary is older than him, 3. Who wants a kite ? 3Ie. In each of these sentences there is a verb understood. Let us write the sentences out in full : 1. Richard is taller than me am. 2. Mary is older than Mm is. 3. Who wants a kite ? Me wants a kite. " Me" is not the subject-form, but the object-form. So " him" is not the subject-form, but the object-form. Sup- plying the subject -form, we have the sentences in the right shape : 1. Richard is older than I. 2. Mary is taller than he. 3. Who wants a kite? I. (3.) Pronouns as Objects. 8. Rule. — A pronoun used as the object of a verb, or with a preposition, must take the object-form. SYNTAX OF PEONOUNS. 133 9. This means that we should say, I do not know ichom I love best. And not, I do not know loJio I love best. Here "whom" is the object of the verb "love," and hence it has, quite properly, the object-form; but " who" is the subject-form, which is incorrect. 10. A pronoun linked by a preposition must always be in the objective form. Thus : To lohom did you give that book ? not To who did you give that book? Note.— You would not say, To who did you give that book ? But you miglit readily say, Who did you give that book to? The second sentence is just as bad as the first. The reason why the error is com- mitted is because the preposition is removed to a considerable dis- tance from the pronoun. Hence, when you are in any doubt in this matter, put the preposition immediately before the pronoun and see if the pronoim has the object-form. 11. The following incorrect form of expression is very often heard : Between you and I. This should be "between you and me." The preposition h^ween requires the object-form of the pronoun ; hence me, and not Z, should be employed. Correct the mistakes in the pronouns: 1. Peter is in the same grade as me. 2. Who do you see, sister Anne ? 3. Between you and I, all is not gold that glitters. 4. No such girl as her should be promoted. 5. Let you and I go out boating. 6. Who did you get that book from ? (4.) Common Mistakes in Pronouns. 12. The scholar may write the following sentences: 1. Richard he went to school. 2. Eva she forgot her lunch-basket. 3. The dog it ran down the street. 134 LANGUAGE LESSONS. You may make these sentences good English by leav- ing out the "he" in the first sentence, the "she" in the second, and the " it " in the third. In the first sentence, "Richard he went to school," the subject is "Richard." You wish to say of hira that he went to school. The way to do this is to say, "Richard went to school." The pronoun "he" is quite unnecessary, because you have the subject, Richard. 13. Direction. — Do not use a personal pronoun as the subject of a verb when the verb has already a noun for its subject. Note.— It must not be thought that a pronoun must never be used as the subject of a verb that has already a noun for its subject. In poetry both noun and pronoun are often used. Thus — "For the deck it was their field of fame." Here the noun " deck " and the pronoun " it " are both used as sub- jects. But this is poetry. In plain prose we should write, For the deck was their field of fame. When you come to write poetry, you may, perhaps, form such sen- tences as these : " My banks they are furnished with bees." " The count he was left to the vulture and hound." But be very careful, in ordinary speaking and writing, never to use so faulty a mode of expressing yourself as " Richard he went to school." (5.) Politeness in Pronouns. 14. Rule I. — In the position of singular pronouns of different persons, the second (you) precedes the others (he, she, it, I) ; and the third (he, she, it) precedes the first (I) ; as, You and he will go. He and I will go. Observation. — Here "he" and "you," "I" and "he," would not be correct. 15. A noun has the same place as a third personal pro- noun ; as, He says he saw either my cousin or me. Observation. — Here "cousin," in the third person, precedes "me" in the first. 16. Rule II. — With the plural pronouns, we has the first place, you the second, and they the third ; as, We and they start to-morrow. SYNTAX OP PRONOUNS. 136 Explanation. — The reason of the difference in the position of the singular and of the plural pronouns is this : In the singular number, the speaker (i), out of politeness, puts himself after the person spoken to and the person spoken of. But in the plural number, for the same reason, he puts those who are most intimately associated with him in the first place (and hence is forced to use the pronoun 'we), then the persons sj^oken to, and then those spoken of. In the following sentences, write over the pronouns of what person they are, and point out the application of the rules just given : 1. I would have told you and him a piece of news, if you had stayed. 2. How did you and John settle the matter ? 3. Why should Mary and I be kept at home? 4. Neither we nor you have done our duty. 5. We and our brothers are going to a party. • (6.) It is I. 17. Pupils may write the following sentences: 1. It is Z 2. Who is the general? I am Ae. 3. We thought it was she. The pronoun "I" is in the subject-form, and comes after the verb *'is." The pronoun " he " is in the subject-form, and comes after the verb "am." The pronoun "she" is in the subject-form, and comes after the verb "was." 18. In these sentences it would be incorrect to say, 1. It is me. 2. Who is the general? I am him. 3. We thouQ-ht it was her. In these incorrect sentences the pronouns "me," "him," and "her" are in the object-form. Why should the subject-form be used in place of the object- form ? The reason is that the verb be denotes that what comes after it is the same as what comes before it. " It is /" means " 7 am the person spoken about." "We thought it was she " means "We thought she was the person referred to." 19. Now write the two following sentences: 1 . They thought that it was I. 2. They thought them to be us. 136 LANGUAGE LESSONS, In the first sentence, " I " is in the subject-form, because the verb "was" is preceded by it^ a pronoun-subject. It would be incorrect to say, "They thought that it was me.'" In the second sentence, the pronoun " us " is in the object-form, and this is correct. Why is tliis ? The reason is that the verb " be " is preceded by " them," an object- pronoun. * 20. Rule. — The subject-form of the pronouns comes after the verb be when a subject comes before the verb be. The object-form of the pronouns comes after the verb be when an object comes before the verb be. (7.) Parsing Pronouns. 21. Pronouns have the same uses as nouns, and are parsed in the same way as nouns. Exercise 46. Copy the following story ; underline all the pronouns, and parse them : DUTCH CURE FOR LAZINESS. During a morning walk, a merchant who was detained by business in Amsterdam came to a group of men who were standing round a well, into which a strongly built man had just been let down. A pipe, whose mouth was at the top of the well, had been opened, and a stream of wa- ter from it was flowing down into the well and beginning gradually to fill it. The fellow below had quite enough to do, if he did not want to be drowned, to keep the water out by means of a pump which was at the bottom of the well. The merchant, pitying the man, asked for an explanation of what seemed a heartless, cruel joke. "Sir," replied an old man standing near, " that man is, as you see, healthy and strong ; I have myself offered him work twenty times ; nevertheless, he always allows laziness to get the better of him, and will make any excuse to beg his bread from door to door, though he might easily earn it himself by work if he liked. We are now trying to make him feel that he can work. If he uses the strength which is in his arms, he will be saved ; if he lets them hang idle, he will be drowned. But look," continued the old Dutchman, as he went to the edge of the well, "the fellow finds out that he has got muscles ; in an hour we shall let him out with better resolutions for the future." Such was the case, and the cure was effbctnal. SYNTAX OF ADVEEBS. 13*7 L. SYNTAX OF ADVERBS. (1.) Position of Adverbs. 1. Rule. — Adverbs should be so placed in a sentence as to qualify the word intended. ILLUSTEATION. 1. He came to see me only once. 2. He only came to see me once. 2. These two sentences have different meanings ac- cording as the adverb " only " is placed so as to qualify once or came. The first means, " He came to see me only once," not oftener. The second means, " He only came to see me once " — he did nothing else. See in how many positions you can place the adverbs in these sentences, and tell the change of meaning made by each shifting of place : 1. Only he mourned for his brother. 2. We may probably go there to-morrow. 3. Charles resolved immediately to make an apology. (2.) Misuse of Adjectives for Adverbs. 3. Direction.— Never use adjectives as adverbs. Say, The girl speaks distinctly — not distinct. Is there any thing irrong in these sentences} 1. Pauline writes elegant. 2. Joseph walks slow. 4. Remember that verbs can be qualified only by ad- verbs^ and that the only seeming exception is in the case of a few verbs that contain the meaning of the verb he. (See Lesson XLIV., page 121.) ' 5. Direction. — Use the adjective, and not the adverb. 138 LANGUAGE LESSONS. when you can change the verb into the corresponding part of the verb he. Thus, The fields loolc green^ might be, The fields are green. Hq looks, cold ; ) v, <- j He looks co^c?/y on us. The air felt keen; [ ' ( He fislt the insult keenly. 6. Would you say, She looks ^?i6, ov finely? Would you say, Mary looks beautifully ^ or beautiful? (3.) Double Negatives. 7. Rule.— In English, two negatives are equal to an afi&rmative. Hence, never introduce two negatives when you intend to make a negative statement. ILLUSTEATION. I have 7iot done nothing. This means I have done something ; whereas what was meant was, I have not done any thing. Correct these sentences : 1. I don't like geography nohow. 2. I did not get no dinner to-day. 3. Can your father not do no work ? 4. He did not say nothing. Parsing Adverbs. 8. Adverbs are parsed by saying, They limit the verb, adjective, or other adverb [naming it]. Exercise 47. Parse the adverbs in the following sentences : 1 . The very fairest flowers usually wither most quickly. 2. Slowly and sadly we laid him down. 3. The pupil has answered Aery well. 4. When are you coming ? 5. We will know our lesson better to-morrow. 6. She loved not wisely, but too well. ON COMPOUND SENTENCES. 139 LI. ON COMPOUND SENTENCI^S. The rain descended, and the floods came. 1. Here two statements, " The rain descended," "the floods came," are joined into one sentence by the conjunc- tion " and," but neither qualifies the other. 2. Definition. — A sentence consisting of two or more statements joined, so that one does not qualify another, is called a compound sentence. Explanation. — If we should say, '■^When the rain descended, the floods came," the first statement would qualify the second; it would tell when the floods came. "When the rain descended, the floods came, " is not a compound sentence, but a complex sentence ; and this kind of sentence we shall learn about hereafter. 3. The diflerent statements of a compound sentence are called its members. 4. The members of a compound sentence are joined by one of the co-ordinate conjunctions. The principal co- ordinate conjunctions are and, hut ^ or, hence, either — or, neither — nor. Note 1.— Sometimes the conjunction is omitted ; but if the sen- tence contains two principal statements, it is still a compound sen- tence. Thus— " Man proposes, God disposes." Note 2. — Sometimes the connecting word is a relative pronoun or a relative adverb. Example 1. — " The next battle was that of Gettysburg, wliich decided the war." This is equivalent to, '■^ and this decided the war." Example 2. — "I shall be here at ten o'clock, when I shall ex- pect to meet you" = " and then I shall expect to meet you." We shall hereafter see that relative pronouns and relative adverbs generally connect a subordinate clause with a principal member, and so make a complex sentence. But when the relative pronoun or ad- verb contains the sense of and, the sentence is compound. 140 LA.NGUAGE LESSONS. Select the members of the following compound sentences, and name the con- nectiTCS, if any : 1. John went, but James stayed at home. 2. Give me my wages, and send me away. 3. He is a diligent boy ; hence he succeeds well. 4. Go to the ant, thou sluggard ; consider her ways and be wise. 5. I shall either see you or write to you. Supply a second member to make compound sentences out of the following : 1 . The clouds are dispersed, and . 2. To err is human ; but . 3. We learn our lessons carefully : therefore . 4. Either you never asked me to do it, or . 5. Contracted Compound Sentences. — It often happens that different members of a compound sentence have the same subject, or the same predicate, or the same enlarge- ments of either or of both. When these common ele- ments are omitted in one of the members, the sentence is a contracted compound sentence. ILLUSTEATIONS. 1. The birds saw the little pool, and the birds came there to drink. Contracted thus : The birds saw the little pool, and came there to drink. Here the subject, "birds," being common to both members, is omit- ted from the second, and the sentence is contracted. 2. Either a knave must have done this, or a fool must have done this. Contracted : Either a knave or a fool must have done this. Here the predicate, ' ' must have done " this, being common to both members, is omitted from the first. 3. Cold produces ice, and heat dissolves ice. Contracted : Cold produces, and heat dissolves ice. The object, " ice," being common to both members, is omitted from the first member of the contracted form. ON COMPOUND SENTENCES. 141 6. Punctuation. — The rules heretofore given for the use of commas in simple sentences apply to similar con- structions in compound sentences. The only new point is, how to separate the members of a compound sen- tence. 7. Rule. — Separate short members of a compound sen- tence by commas ; but if the members are long, and have commas within them, use the semicolon to divide the mem- bers. ILLUSTRATIONS. 1. Every man desireth to live long, but no man would be old. (Short members, separated by a comma.) 2. The genius making me no answer, I turned about to address myself to him ; but I found that he had left me. (Long member containing a comma ; hence, divided from the other member by a semicolon.) Exercise 48. A. Contract the following compound se^itences^ and state the nature of the contraction : 1. The jackal happened to be at a short distance, and the jackal was instantly dispatched on this important business, 2. The rice-plant grows in great abundance in India ; the rice-plant grows in great abundance in China. 3. We examined their implements, we examined their clothes, we ex- amined their food. 4. America exports cotton ; England imports cotton. 5. The young soldier joined his regiment, and the young soldier was present at the battle. B. Contract the following fogr sentences into one com- pound sentence of nine words : 1. Frogs live on land. 2. Frogs live in water. 3. Seals live on land. 4. Seals live in water. 142 LANGUAGE LESSONS. LIT. ANALYSIS OF COMPOUND SENTENCES. In analyzing a compound sentence, it is only neces- sary to mention of what statements (two or more) it is made up to tell what conjunction connects the state- ments, and then proceed to analyze the separate state- ments in precisely the same manner in which we analyzed simple sentences. Model of Analysis. The Revolutionary War lasted for seven years, and it ended in 1782. This is a compound sentence. It is composed of the two state- ments "The Revolutionary War lasted for seven years," "It ended in 1782." These statements are connected by the co-ordinate con- junction "and." The first statement is, " The Revolutionary War lasted for seven years." The simple subject is "war." Tlie subject is enlarged by the adjectives " the" and " Revolutionary." The simple predicate is "lasted." The predicate is enlarged by the adverbial phrase "for seven years," The second statement is, "It ended in 1782." The subject is "it" — not enlarged. The simple predicate is "ended." The predicate is enlarged by the adverbial phrase "in 1782." Exercise 49. Analyze the following compound sentences : 1. The country was rich, and the city was the centre of its wealth. 2. The man recovered from the bite, but the dog died. 3. The army must gain a victory, or our cause will be ruined. 4. All the world is a stage, and all the men and women [are] merely players. 5. There were no more worlds to conquer ; therefore Alexander wept. G. Prosperity did not unduly elate Washington, nor did misfortune cast him down. MAKING COMPOUND SENTENCES. 143 LIII. MAKING COMPOUND SENTENCES. 1. We have had considerable practice in breaking up long, loose compound sentences into a series of simple sentences, each containing but one statement. 2. It is very clumsy to combine in one sentence a series of statements loosely connected by ands and ifs, buts and ors ; and if the scholar has profited by the exer- cises given, he will have learned to avoid so faulty a way of writing and speaking. 3. But, at the same time, it is very important to be able to compose good compound sentences. If a letter or a composition consists o? nothing but little simple sen- tences, it will be too much broken up. The following will illustrate this. The Lion. 1. The lion is found in Africa. 2. Tiie lion is found in Asia. 3. During the day the lion slumbers in his retreat. 4. Night sets in. .5. The lion then rouses himself from his lair. 6. The lion then begins to prowl. 7. In general, the lion waits in ambush. 8. The lion some- times creejjs towards his victim. 9. The lion seizes his victim with his powerful claws. 4. Here are nine sentences, and they are all simple sentences. The effect is not agreeable when you read this piece aloud. The sentences are too much of the same length. Then the words "the lion" occur too fre- quently, the writer apparently forgetting that there are such things as pronouns, and that pronouns stcmd for nouns. 5. Sentences 1 and 2 should be brought together into one contracted compound sentence, thus : 1. The lion is found in Africa and in Asia. 144 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 6. Sentences 3, ^ 5, and 6 may be blended into one compound sentence, thus : 2. During the day he slumbers in his retreat ; but, when night sets in, he rouses himself from his lair, and begins to prowl. 1. Sentence 7 may remain unchanged in form — a short simple sentence between two somewhat long compound sentences. The pronoun he should, however, be substi- tuted for " the lion," thus : 3. In general, he waits in ambush. 8. Sentences 8 and 9 should be connected into one compound sentence, thus : 4. Sometimes, however, he creeps towards his victim, and seizes it with his powerful claws. 9. The little composition now reads as follows, and is certainly much better than it was in its original form ; The lion is found in Africa and in Asia. During the day he slum- bers in his retreat ; but, when night sets in, he rouses himself from his lair, and begins to prowl. In general, he waits in ambush. Some- times, however, he creeps towards his victim, and seizes it with his powerful claws. Note. — In writing the following exercise, make any little changes that are needed to bring the pieces into good shape. The more thought you give to these exercises, the better will be the result. A great painter was once asked how he mixed his paints so as to pro- duce such brilliant colors. His reply was, "With brains, sir." Exercise 50. Combine the simple sentences in each of the following paragraphs into compound sentences where it is necessary, so as to produce a continuous narrative. A. The robin is a well-known bird. The robin is called the red-breast. The robin's breast is of a deep red orange color. The head is brown. The upper parts are brown. The head and upper parts are tinged with greenish olive. . B. The whale is the largest animal known to us. The whale is some- times met with from sixty to seventy feet in length. It is an inhabitant MAKING COMPOUND SENTENCES. 145 of the seas within the Arctic Circle. It is aa inhabitant of the seas within the Antarctic Circle. Whale-fishing is carried on to a consider- able extent from this country. Many vessels proceed annually to it from New York, Boston, and San Francisco. This animal is valuable for its oil. "We obtain oil from it. The oil is called blubber. This animal is valuable also for its whalebone. The whalebone is obtained from its mouth. There it acts as a sieve, to retain the food the whale obtains by straining the sea-water. C. A hungry dog had picked up a bone. He hurried away with it. He came to a nice clear brook. The brook was crossed by a plank. The sun shone brightly. The dog's shadow was made vivid in the water. He mistook it for another dog with a bone in his mouth. He coveted the second bone. He made a snap at the shadow. He took fright at his own ugly face. The foce seemed to come quite close to him with open jaws. He ran yelping away. He lost both bores. He was thus the victim of his own greediness. He was thus the victim of his own cowardice. D. Alphonso was king of Sicily. Alphonso was king of Naples. Al- phonso was remarkable for liindness to his subjects. Alphonso was re- markable for condescension to his subjects. At one time Alphonso was traveling privately through Campania. Alphonso came up to a mule- teer. The muleteer's beast had stuck in the mud. The muleteer could not draw it out with all his strength. The poor man had implored the aid of every passenger in vain. He now sought assistance from the king. He did not know who the king was. Alphonso instantly dis- mounted from his horse. Alphonso helped the man. Alphonso soon freed the mule. Alphonso brought it upon safe ground. The muleteer learned that it was the king. The muleteer fell on his knees. The mule- teer asked his pardon. Alphonso removed his fears. Alphonso told him that he had given no offense. This goodness of the king reconciled many to him. Many had formerly opposed him. The polar bear is of a white color. It is found in the arctic regions. It leads almost entirely an aquatic mode of life in these regions. Its body is long. Its head is flat. Its muzzle is broad. Its mouth is pe- culiarly small. The paws are very large. They are covered on the un- der side with coarse hair. From the coarse hair it derives security in walking over the slippery ice. The fur is long. The fur is woolly. It is of fine texture. It is of considersfble value. 146 LANGUAGE LESSONS. LIV. COMPLEX SENTENCES. I shall be ready when you call me. He will learn if you teach him. 1. The first sentence consists of two statements, of which the second, " when you call me," qualifies the predicate of the other, "I shall be ready." The second sentence is of two parts, of which one, "if you teach him," is a supposition qualifying the other, or principal state- ment, " he will learn." 2. DEFiNinoN. — A sentence consisting of two or more statements joined together, so that one statement is prin- cipal and the other subordinate, is called a complex sen- tence. 3. The principal part is called the principal member ; the subordinate part is called a clause. 4. Clauses are generally joined to principal members, (1.) By subordinate conjunctions, such as that and if. (2.) By the relative pronouns — loho, lohich^ that, what. (3.) By relative adverbs — wherij ichere, ichy. 5. There are three kinds of clauses: The noun clause. The adjective clause. The adverbial clause. (1.) The Noun Clause. 6. Definition. — A clause which is the subject or the object of the principal member is called a noun clause; as, "Do you remember what I said f"* COMPLEX SENTENCES. 147 Exercise 61. A. Point out the noun clauses in the following sentences, and tell whether they are subjects or objects : 1. They soon saw that the elephant's mouth was underneatli his trunk. 2. No one could tell what had become of him. 3. That we get leather from skins is known to every one. 4. Where Homer was born is not known. 5. Every one thought the tree would be blown down. B. Supply 7ioun clauses in the following sentences: 1 . Do you not remember ? 2. Most people know . 3. How could she hear ? 4. People used to think . 5. He asked one of the masons to tell him . (2.) The Adjective Clause. 7. Definition.— A clause that qualifies a rcun is called an adjective clause; as, "Those birds that Hoe on other animals are called birds of prey." Exercise 62. A. Point out the adjective clauses, and tell what nouns they qualify : 1 . I know a story of an eagle, which you will like to hear. 2. The crowd that had gathered round to welcome her now stood back. 3. Franklin, who was a great philosopher, was born in Boston. 4. We get silk from a caterpillar which is called the silk-worm. 5. The house where Shakspeare was born still stands. 6. Among the foreigners who repaired to Egypt to buy corn were the brethren of Joseph. 7. The Scots, who advanced to York, ravaged the country with unsparing fury. 8. The minutest animal that is attentively examined aifords a thousand wonders. 9. The heart of Kobert Bruce, which was preserved in a sil- ver case, was consigned to the care of Douglas. 148 LANGUAGE LESSONS. B. Supply adjective clauses. 1. I will show you the book . 2. The hides of oxen and sheep are sold to the tanner . 3. The milk and the butter are obtained from the cow. 4. That is the house . 5. Are these the acorns ? (3.) The Adverbial Clause. 8. Definition.— A clause that qualifies the verb of the principal member is called an adverbial, clause ; as, " The daisy shuts her eye wheji the dew begins to falV* Exercise 53. A. Point out the adverbial clauses. 1. We shall sail when the moon rises. 2. The sugar-cane is pressed between heavy rollers till all the juice runs" out. 3. As they drew near the nest, the eagle dashed by. 4. If we study, we shall improve. 5. You will not succeed unless you persevere. B. Supply adverbial clauses. 1 . We shall be glad to see you 2. Come . 3. I will tell you a secret . 4. Charles had not been five minutes on the ice . 5. We shall learn a great many things • . C. Write a complex sentence on each of the following words : 1. Ants. 3. The bufiiilo. 5. Scholars. 2. Music. 4. Columbus. 6. Geography, ANALYSIS OP COAft»LEX SENTENCES. 149 LV. ANALYSIS OP COMPLEX SENTENCES. In analyzing complex sentences, proceed as follows : L Tell which is the principal member. IL Tell which is the clause. in. Tell what connective joins the clause with the principal member. IV. Then analyze the principal member and the clause, as in the case of simple sentences. Model of Analysis. Mcample, When the war closed, Washington retired to Mount Vernon. This is a complex sentence. The principal member is, " Washing- ton retired to Mount Vernon." The clause (or subordinate proposi- tion) is, "When the war closed." The connective is the relative ad- verb "when." The subject of the principal member is "Washington." The predicate is " retired." The predicate is enlarged by the adverbial phrase " to Mount Vernon." The subject of the clause is "the war." The predicate is "closed." Exercise 64. Analyze the following complex sentences : 1. If you would be happy, you must be active. 2. We get silk from a caterpillar which is called the silk-worm. 3. I shall be ready when you call me. 4. He is proud that he is a soldier. 5. Wait till you see. 6. The sea, after it had spent its fury, became calm. 7. When the door was opened, the people crowded into the hall. 8. And when he next doth ride abroad, May I be there to see. 150 LANGUAGE LESSONS. LVI. EXPANDING AND CONTRACTING SEN- TENCES. 1. Rule. — A simple sentence is transformed into a com- plex sentence by changing a word or phrase into a clause. A complex sentence is transformed into a compound sen- tence by changing a clause into a principal member. (1.) Simple to Complex. At the conclusion of the battle, the commander began to count his loss. What kind of a sentence is this ? A simple sentence, because it contains but one subject, " the commander," and one predicate, " began to count his loss." What is the expression " at the conclusion of tho battle ?" It is an adverbial phrase, qualifying the verb " began." 2. Now we may, by a little change, make this a com- plex sentence. Instead of saying "at the conclusion of the battle," we may say, when the battle was concluded. The expression "when the battle was concluded" is more than a phrase — it is a clause ; and if we unite this with the other statement, " the commander began to count his loss," we shall have the following complex sentence : When the battle was concluded, the commander began to count his loss. 3. Let US now take another example : Mary being ill, we had to go to the picnic without her. This is a simple sentence. But change the phrase "Mary being ill" into the clause as Mary was ill, and we have the complex sen- tence. As Mary was ill, we had to go to the picnic without her. 4. Take a third example : The discoveries of Living- stone, one of the greatest travelers of modern times, have taught us much about the interior of Africa. EXPANDING AND CONTKACTING SENTENCES. 151 This is a simple sentence, since it has but one subject and one pred- icate. The phrase ' ' one of the greatest travelers of modern times " is in apposition with Livingstone. Now by putting the words "who was" before this expression, we shall turn it into a clause, and we shall then have the complex sentence, The discoveries of Livingstone, who was one of the greatest travelers of modern times, have taught us much about the interior of Africa. (2.) Complex to Compound. 5. We have changed a number of simple sentences into complex sentences. Now we shall transform these complex sentences into compound sentences. When the battle was concluded, the commander began to count his loss. The reason why this is a complex sentence is because one of the statements, "when the battle was concluded," qualifies the other, which is the principal statement. 6. If we make this qualifying statement a 'principal one, we shall have a compound sentence, thus : The bat- tle was concluded, and the commander began to count his loss. T. The second complex sentence is: As Mary was ill, we had to go to the picnic without her. This is transformed into a compound sentence, as follows : Mary was ill, and hence we had to go to the picnic without her. 8. The third complex sentence is : The discoveries of Livingstone, who was one of the greatest travelers of modern times, have taught us much about the interior of Africa. This is transformed into a compound sentence, as follows : Living- stone was one of the greatest travelers of modern times, and his dis- coveries have taught us much about the interior of Africa. 9. Rule. — A compound sentence is contracted into a complex one by changing a principal member into a clause. A complex sentence is contracted into a simple one by changing a clause into a phrase. 152 LANGUAGE LESSONS. (3.) Compound to Complex. 10. Take the following compound sentence : The sea spent its fury, and then it became calm. This is a compound sentence, because it contains two principal statements. What are these statements? Does either quality the other ? 11. This sentence may be transformed into a complex sentence in the following ways : 1 . The sea, when it had spent its fury, became calm. 2. The sea became calm when it had spent its fury. 3. When the sea had spent its fury, it became calm. 4. When it had spent its fury, the sea became calm. Each of these sentences is a complex sentence, because of its two statements ; the one qualifies the other. What is the principal state- ment in each ? What is the qualifying clause in the first ? the second ? the third ? the fourth ? (4.) Complex to Simple. 12. In order to condense the complex sentence, "When the sea had spent its fury, it became calm," into a simple sentence, we must change the clause, " when the sea had spent its fury," into a phrase: namely, "the sea having spent its fury." We now have the follo\ving forms of the simple sentence. 1 . The sea, having spent its fury, became calm. 2. The sea became calm, having spent its fury. 3. Having spent its fury, the sea became calm. Exercise 55. A. Expand the following simple sentences into complex sente?ices : 1. Quarrelsome persons are disagreeable. 2. The ancients believed the earth to be the centre of the universe. 3. With patience, he might have succeeded. 4. The utility of the telegraph is evident to all. 5. The manner of his escape is a "profound mysteiy. EXPANDING AND CONTEACTING SENTENCES. 153 B. Expand the following complex sentences into com- pound: 1. As the wind was fair, the vessel put to sea. 2. The Scots, who advanced to York, ravaged the country with un- sparing fury. 3. The heart of Robert Bruce, which was preserved in a silver case, • was consigned to the care of Douglas. 4. Beyond the Mississippi are vast prairies, over which roam great herds of buffalo. C. Contract the following compound sentences into com- plex sentences, and then, if possible, into swiple sentences: 1. The light infantry joined the main body, and the British troops re- treated precipitately into Boston. 2. He was a worthless man, and he could not command the respect of his neighbors. 3. Egypt is a wonderfully fertile country, and it is annually overflowed by the River Nile. 4. The earth is round, and no one doubts it. 5. The house w^as very large, and consequently there was little com- fort in it. D. Contract the following complex sentences into simple sente?ices : 1. Socrates proved that virtue is its own reward. 2. When morning began to dawn, our ship struck on a sunken reef, near the rock-bound coast. 3. It may be easily shown that the earth is round [the rotundity of]. 4. It is generally believed that the soul is immortal. 5. The rain has been falling ever since the sun rose. 6. A tree is known by the fruit that it bears. 7. As Egypt is annually overflowed by the Nile, it is a very rich coun- try. 8. The man who is virtuous will be happy. 154 LANGUAGE LESSONS. MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. A. — Letter-writing. Superscriptions and Subscriptions. The following superscriptions, subscriptions, etc., of letters are de- signed to show what is now regarded as the most approved arrangement and style of these parts ; and they may serve as models, according to circumstances. Some of the most common forms of address are Sir, Dear Sir, My dear Sir, Respected Sir, Sirs, Dear Sirs, Gentlemen, Ladies, Madam, Dear Madam, etc. ; Friend BroAvn, Dear Susan, My dear Friend, My dear Mr. Smith, My dear Mrs. Smith, Mother, Brother, etc., according to the relations of respect, intimacy, or affection existing between the parties. Note that the foraa of address Madam, Dear Madam, is as applicable to unmarried as to married ladies. The subscription may be Yours, Yours truly. Most truly yours, Very truly yours. Yours respectfully, Respectfully, Sincerely yours. Your friend. Your obedient servant, etc. ; Yours affectionately. Your affectionate friend. Your loving brother, sister, etc., followed by the name of the writer. The closing will vary with the varying relations of the parties. Mr., Mrs., Miss, and Master are common titles, and should be used unless the person has a higher title. Messrs. and Misses are prefixed to the name of a firm, or to the names of persons collectively, and the name is followed by Sirs, Dear Sirs, Gentlemen, or Ladies, as the case may be. Medical men have the titles Dr. and M.D. Legal gentlemen, artists, and sometimes others of high social standing, have the title Esq. But this title has so completely lost all meaning in this country that per- sons of good taste are wholly ceasing to use it : thus, "Mr. John Smith," not "John Smith, Esq." ^' Be careful never to use the form "3fr. John Smith, Esq." Military men have the titles Gen., Maj.-Gen., Col., Capt., etc., according to rank. Graduates of colleges have some aca- demic title, as A.B., A.M., etc. Clergymen have the titles. The Rev., The Rev. Dr., and, if bishops, that of Rt. Rev. The Hon. is the proper title for judges, congressmen, state senators, mayors of cities, heads of government departments, and others of similar rank ; and His Excellency, for the governor of any state, or an ambassador of the United States. The President may be addressed His Excellency, but strict etiquette pre- scribes the form as included in the following models : MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. 155 (1.) Heading or Date. (2.) Address/ Cambridge, Mass., Feb. 3, 1873. Mr, James F. Hammond, 421 Broadway., N. Y. (3.) Introduction. Dear &h\ — , (4.) Body. In reply to your letter of the \^th inst.^ Iheg leave to say that I most cheerfully accede to your very reasonable request, etc. ^5.) subscription. Yours respectfully, Henry II. Adams. Note on Punctuation. — In the heading or date, a comma is placed after "Cambridge," because the full form is the phrase = This is written in the city of Cambridge. A period is placed after Mass. because it is an abbreviation, and a comma after Mass. because it is an elliptical phrase =c in the State of Massachusetts. A period is placed after Feb. for the same reason as in Mass. A comma is placed after 3, because in reality a phrase = on the third day. A period closes 1873, because the end of an ellip- tical declarative sentence = This is written in the city of Cambridge, etc. In the address, "Mr. James F. Hammond," is followed by a comma to set oflF the succeeding elliptical phrase at No. 421 Broadway. "Broad- way" is followed by a comma to set it off from the elliptical phrase in the city of New York. N. is followed by a period because an abbreviation, and Y. by a period, which serves both as the sign of abbreviation and as the terminal mark. The form Dear Sir may be followed by the comma and dash (,— ), or by the colon (:), as in the next model. In the sub- scription, Yours respectfully is followed by a comma, because in apposition with the name, Henry If. Adams. |]^^ Note that the words Dear Sir in the introduction begin with capitals. 9G Pearl St., New York, Messrs. Mchols d Hall, "^"^^ ^^' ^^^2* 32 Bromfield St., Boston. Dear Sirs : I am, gentlemen, ^ Respectfully yours, David B. Smith, Jr. * The address inside the letter should be identical with the superscrip- tion upon the envelope, and it may be put either before the introduction or at the bottom of the letter, on the left-hand side. 156 LANGUAGE LESSONS. (1.) To the Board of Education, Chicago, III. Gentlemoi^ — • Yery respectfully, Edward Evans. (1.) Dear Madam, — Sincerely yours, Henry Varnum, Miss Amelia J). CooJc, 18 Pemherton Square, Boston, (1.) Mr. President, — I have the honor to be. Sir, Your obedient servant, Timothy L, Trusty, To the Preside7it, Executive Mansion, Washington, D. C. (2.) My dear Friend, — (6.) Yours truly, Isaac II. Hamlin, Dear Sister Mary, — YoMr affectionate brother, William. My dear Mr. Broicn, — Most tridy yours, Alexander Knox. MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. 157 My dear iSir,-^^ Yours, as ever, Horace 3fann. NOTE OP INVITATION. 3fr, Stewart requests the pleasure of Mr, MarshaWs company at dinner, on Thursday next, at 5 o'clock, 124 Vanderhilt Av. Monday, 2Qth Sept. KEPLY. Mr. Marshall accepts with pleasure Mr. Stewards invi- tation to dinner, on Thursday next, at 5 o'clock. 12 3Iontague St. Tuesday, dOth Sept. LETTER OF INTRODUCTION. Chicago, Sept. 25, 1873. I>ear Sir, — It gives me pleasure to introduce to you my much esteemed friend, Mr. W. P. Johnson. Any attentions that you may show him will be gratefully acknowledged and cheerfully reciprocated hy Yours truly, Hon. Wm. Graham, A. B. Grover. 27 State Street, Albany, iVI Y. Note.— It is not customary to seal a letter of introduction. Exercise 66. 1 . Write a letter to your teacher narrating your experiences on your last vacation. 2. Write and tell your duties at school— your amusements or recrea- tions — your walks — books — thoughts or observations. 3. Write and tell about a visit to a museum or public garden — the objects of interest, etc. 4. Write about the days of your childhood — your earliest recollections — your first days at school — your impressions — your ideas about that period of your life. 158 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 5. Write and tell about an evening party — the number — the amuse- ments — the music — the pleasures of social intercourse. 6. Write the results of the last examination — whether you were pro- moted — what studies you are pursuing with most interest, etc. B. — Newspaper Paragraphs. On the following heads write paragraphs such as you read in the " locals " of the newspapers : Runaway. — A horse attached to John Gilpin's beer wagon A FiEE. — Late last night our quiet town was startled by an alarm of fire . . . . . . Presbyterian Sociable.— The Ladies' Sociable connected with the Presbyterian Church met ..... A New School-house. — To-day the laying of the corner-stone of the Lincoln School in this city will take place Railroad Accident. — Yesterday as the cars were starting from the Broad Street Station ..... Married.* — ...... C. — Business Composition. Boston, Oct. 17, 1872. Mr. Heney L. Stone Bought of George S. Thompson & Co. 48 yds. Muslin, at .22 110.46 12 " Drilling, 20 " French Chintz, " 1 doz. Spools Thread, " $20.99 Received Payment, Geo. S. Thompson & Co. * There is but one proper way of making this announcement, and it is nearly always wrong in the newspapers. See Swinton's " School Com- position." .18 2.16 .40 8.00 .37 37 MISCELLANEOUS EXEECISES IN COMPOSITION. 159 Note on Pttnctuation.— In the heading of bills, receipts, etc., the punctuation obeys the principles explained under Letters. In the enu- meration of articles the names of denominations, asyds., cloz., etc., should begin with small letters, but the articles themselves with capitals. San Francisco, Nov. 1, 1872. Mr. Edward Edson, To Benjamin H. Fenton, Dr. To 10 lbs. Java Coffee, at .40 $4.00 " 5 " Green Tea, u 1.20 6.00 "12 " Brown Sugar, tt .14 1.68 " 4 gals. Molasses, u .3Vi 1.50 $13.18 Received Payment, Benj. H. Fenton, per Fred. C. Dow. Exercise 57. Make out the bills for the following articles and receipt them: 1. Henry Dixon bought, Feb. 3d, 1873, of Peter Brown & Co., 12 lbs. of sugar, at 10 cts. ; 8 lbs. of coffee, at 45 cts. ; 4 lbs. of tea, at 75 cts. 2. Jameson & Son sold, April 6tli, 1873, to Richard Roby, 2 doz. men's black beaver hats, at $4 apiece; 6 doz. boys' drab hats, at $1.50 apiece; ^ doz. silk umbrellas, at $4.50 ; J doz. leather satchels, at $3.50. 3. Make out a bill for labor ; for articles purchased at a hardware store ; boot and shoe store ; book store ; dry-goods store ; grocery store ; lumber yard, etc. RECEIPT FOR RENT. $309^^0%. New York, May 15, 1878. JReceived of Messrs. Harper <& JBrothers, Three Hundred Nine and -^ Dollars., in full for rent of store JVb. 20 Canal St., to Sejot. 1, 1873. Williamson <& Richardson, per Jas. H. Johnson, Note on Punctuation.— In this receipt, the commas are accounted for by the fact that the form consists of a succession of elliptical phrases = '■'■There is Tiereby received of Messrs. Harper & Brothers, t7ie sum of Three Hundred Nine and j^^ Dollars, which is the sum in full for rent of store No. 20 Canal St., doicn to Sept. 1, in the year 1873." 160 LANGUAGE LESSONS. EECEIPT IN FULL OP ALL DEMANDS. $500fo%. Cambridge, Oct. 15, 1872. Received of Boht. H. Jenkins^ Five Hundred and -^-^^ Dollars J in full of all demands. Geo, H. Powell. Exercise 58. Make out receipts as above : 1. Henry A. Nichols receives, March 3d, 1873, of Arthur A. Andrews, $840.25 on account. Make out the receipt. 2. Geo. R. Stone, of Cambridge, this day gives Henry Gilbert $125, in full for one quarter's rent of house No. 10 Elm St. Make out the receipt. 3. Make out a receipt for the rent of a house ; for services rendered ; for interest on a note to date ; for money received on account ; in settle- ment of an account to date ; for investment, etc. OEDER FOR GOODS. |!')00. ■ Cambridge, August 9, 1873., Edw. H. Hamlin will please deliver to Queen cfc Valen- tine goods to the amount of Five Hundred Dollars, and charge the same to William A. Stewart. ORDER FOR MONEY. $33. Boston, Feb. 19, 1873. Messrs. Brown <& Hooker. Gentlemen^ — Please pay to Thomas Andreics, or order, Thirty-three Dollars, due on my account, and ohlige, Yours respectfxdly, Henry W. Wilkins. BANK CHECK. No. 27. Chicago, Nov. 3, 1872. First National Bank. Pay to Wm. H. Boicher, or order. Sixty-nine and -^ Dollars. ^^^Tih' Samuel Wallace. MISCELLANEOUS EXEECISES IK COMPOSITION. 161 Exercise 59. Make out the following orders in due form, supplying dates : 1. Carter Brothers give to Wm. H. Brown an order for 10 barrels of flour, Genesee Extra, on Robt. L. Fuller. 2. Lewis Clarke gives Stephen Dehnison an order on Brown, Lewis, & Co., for $2000. 3. Robt. Fulton gives to Hiram Day a check on Charles River Na- tional Bank for $1000. 4. Order somebody to pay money to somebody, or to deliver goods to somebody, and charge to your account, or to the account of somebody else. PEOMISSORY NOTE PAYABLE TO ORDER. $300. Richmond, Aug. 8, 1872. Ninety days after date, for value received, I promise to pay James Dickerman, or order, Three Hundred Dollars. Henry G. Graham. PROMISSORY NOTE PAYABLE TO BEARER. $192i^^j. Cincinnati, May 20, 1873. On or before April 20, 1874,/or value received, I prom- ise to pay Richard Howe, or hearer, One Hundred Ninety- two and T^ Dollars. James W. Ward. JOINT AND SEVERAL NOTE. $30Gli®/j. Boston, Sept. 4, 1873. On demand, for value received, we jointly and severally promise to pay Walter Wheeler, or order. Three Thousand Sixty-one and -j^ Dollars, with interest at 7 per cent. Ward, Wood, c0 Co. Exercise 60. "Write out "the following according to the models: 1 . John Scott, of Cambridge, owes Thomas Hooker $400, for which he gives his note, payable to him, or to his order, in four months from March 3d, 1873. Write the note. 2. On or before the 10th of Oct., 1873, Stephen Morse, Jr., of Bos- ton, promises to pay to William Stickney, or bearer, $75.75. Write the note, and date it April 10th, 1873. 162 LANGUAGE LESSONS. 8, Write a note, drawn by Henry S. Harrington, of Boston, in favor of Francis Raymond & Co., for $500, payable on demand, with interest at 7^ per cent. Date the note Feb. 16, 1871, and record in due form the following indorsements : June 1, 1871, $1.50 ; Sept. 13, 1872, $200. D. — Narratives. A profitable exercise in composition is to take a series of detached simple sentences and put them together so as to make a continuous narrative, using sentences of the various sorts, simple, compound, and complex. Example. — "/n union is strength.^^* An old man was on the point of death. He called his sons to his bed- side. He ordered them to break a bundle of arrows. The young men were strong. They could not break the bundle. He took it in his turn. He untied it. He easily broke each arrow singly. He then turned to- wards his sons. He said to them, ' ' Mark the effect of union. United like a bundle, you will be invincible. Divided, you will be broken like reeds." One way of combining. An old man on the point of death called his sons to his bedside, and ordered them to break a bundle of arrows. The young men, though strong, being unable to do so, he took the bundle in his turn, untied it, and easily broke each arrow singly. Then turning towards his sons, he said to them, " Mark the effect of union. United like a bundle, you will be invincible; divided, you will be broken like reeds." Another mode of combining. An old man, being on the point of death, called his sons to his bed- side, and ordei-ed them to break a bundle of arrows. Strong as they were, they were unable to break the bundle ; so he took it in his turn, and, having untied it, easily broke each arrow singly. Turning towards his sons, he said to them, "United, you can not be overpowered; di- vided, you will be broken as easily as reeds." Note.— No two scholars will hit upon exactly the same form of ex- pression. Pupils must try to combine in their own wa}'. Exercise 61. Do the same with the following paragraphs : Tea. Tea is the dried leaf of a shrub. This shrub grows chiefly in China. It is an evergreen. It grows to the height of from four to six feet. It * This model is taken from Swinton's *' Progressive English Grammar." MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. 163 beai-s pretty, white flowers. The flowers resemble wild roses. In China there are many tea farms. These are generally of small extent. They are situated in the upper valleys. They are situated on the slop- ing sides of the hills. In these places the soil is light. It is rich. It is well drained. The plants are raised from seed. They are generally allowed to remain three years in the ground. A crop of leaves is then taken from them. The leaves are carefully picked by the hand. Paul Jones's Great Sea-fight. The most desperate naval fight of the Revolutionary War was the combat between the Bon Homme Richard and the Serapis. This battle took place near the coast of Scotland. The Bon Homme Richard was commanded by John Paul Jones. He was one of the most daring cap- tains that ever trod a deck. The Serapis carried heavier cannon than Jones's ship. Still Jones boldly lashed his vessel to the enemy's side. Then a fearful struggle began. It began under the light of the moon. The muzzles of the guns touched. The crews fought hand to hand, with musket and cutlass. Thrice both vessels were in flames. The carnage went on for two hours. Then the British captain asked Jones if he had surrendered. The little commander replied, "I have only begun my part of the fighting. " At length, after the Serapis had lost over two hundred men, her captain struck his colors. The American ship was then leaking. Jones transferred his crew on board of the captured ves- sel. The next morning the Bon Homme Richard went down. Jones sailed in triumph in the English ship to a French harbor. E. — Wkiting fkom Heads. A more advanced exercise in writing is to give the pupil merely the heads of a little composition, and then require him to fill it out. The Cow. Heads. — The most useful of horned animals ; its flesh ; articles made of its skin ; uses of its horns ; the hair ; the bones ; importance of milk ; the calf; use of its skin. Expanded. — Of all horned animals the cow is the most useful. Its flesh is one of the most necessary articles of food to man ; and the pur- poses to which the various parts of its body are applied are almost innu- merable. Without its skin we could scarcely obtain covering for our feet, the boots and shoes that we wear being almost wholly made from the skin, which is, besides, manufactured into an endless variety of nec- essary commodities. Mixed with lime, its hair serves to make mortar ; its horns are converted into combs, knife -handles, boxes, drinking-ves- 164 LANGUAGE LESSONS. sels, spoons, and other useful articles ; and its bones are equally service- able for domestic and ornamental purposes. The milk of the cow is one of the most valuable of animal products, being in every-day use as a wholesome and nourishing article of diet ; and it is from milk that but- ter and cheese are made. The young of the cow is called a calf; its skin is made into fine boots and shoes, parchment, and the binding of books. Exercise 62. Do the same with the following paragraphs : Description of Printing. Heads. — First step in the process — the setting up of the types — what the types are — how they are arranged in the case — the words are set up letter by letter — the compositor holds in his hand a composing-stick (what is this ?) — the lines are made into pages — the page is fixed in an iron frame called a chase — process of inking — the roller — the paper put over the page— the pressure stamping the characters — number of copies of a large newspaper produced in an hour on one of the great "ten- cylinder" presses. The Cotton Plant. Heads. — Peculiar to wann climates — several species — all have leaves — leaves yellow and purple — when the flowers fall off the seed-pods soon come to maturity — when ripe they spring open — the seeds are then seen enveloped in cotton — the cotton is picked and gathered into bags — next spread out and dried — then separated from the seeds — Whitney's cot- ton-gin — cotton plant best cultivated in the United States — value of the cotton crop every year — where we send it — what we pay England and France for by means of cotton. Sir "Walter Raleigh. Heads. — Was an Englishman — lived during the reign of Queen Eliza- beth — his accomplishments and his talents as a courtier — anecdote of his readiness and tact — the queen and the velvet cloak — his promotions and rewards — his voyage to America — the colony of Virginia — a failure — the importation of tobacco and potatoes into England — Raleigh arrested on a false charge of treason — imprisonment in the Tower — his execution — what you think of Raleigh. F. — Quotations. In the course of a composition, it will often be neces- sary to represent a person as actually talking. This is MISCELLANEOUS EXERCISES IN COMPOSITION. 165 called direct speech. Indirect speech gives the words as reported by another. The words which tlie speaker is represented as using are to be inclosed in quotation-marks. Such expressions as said I, replied he, etc., are not to be put in quotation- marks, but are to be set off from the spoken words by- commas. Example. — "I have lived," said the old man, "a great many years in poverty." Thrown into the indirect form, this would read as follows : " The old man said that he had lived a great many years in poverty." In changing from the direct to the indirect form of speech, the first per- son becomes the third ; the present tense, past ; and the word this Is changed to THAT. Exercise 63. Insert quotation-marks and commas in the following paragraph where necessary : A traveler drenched with rain and benumbed Avith cold arrived at a country inn which he found so full of people that he could not get nesir the fire. Addressing himself to the landlord he called out take a feed of oysters to my horse. To your horse exclaimed the host your horse will never eat them. Do as I ask you returned the traveler. All the people rushed immediately to the stable to see a horse eat oysters ; and the traveler being thus left alone seats himself comfortably by the fire and warms himself at his ease. When the landlord returned he said to the traveler I would have wagered my head that your horse would not cut oysters. Never mind replied the other put them on the table and I will eat them myself when I am thoroughly dried. Change the following passages from the direct to the indirect mode of speech : 1. " I have behaved very ill," said I within myself; " but I have only just set out on my travels, and shall learn better manners as I get along. " 2. '* I can not tell a lie," said Washington. 3. Says Coleridge, ' ' I expect neither profit nor general fame by my writings. " . 4. " If it feeds nothing else," said Shylock, "it will feed my revenge." 5. Burke says, ' ' I never knew a man who was bad fit for service that is good." 166 LANGUAGE LESSONS. G. The following anecdote well illustrates the use of punc- tuation-marks. Let the teacher dictate the piece, and see if the scholars can write it correctly. Exchange papers for correction. A gentleman being in a town in which he was a stranger, chanced to pass a barber's shop, at the door of which he saw the following no- tice : What do you think I'll shave you for nothing And ^ve you sonie drink. Wishing to satisfy his curiosity, which was excited by this unusual an- nouncement, he entered the shop, and, engaging in conversation with the barber, remarked that he must surely have made a fortune by his business. The barber seemed surprised, and asked him what reason he had for thinking so. "Why," said the gentleman, "because you can aiford not only to shave your customers for nothing, but to give them drink besides." "I wish I could," replied the barber; "but that, un- fortunately, is not the case." "Why, then, do you make that announce- ment at the door of your shop?" rejoined the gentleman. "I do noth- ing of the sort," returned the barber; "you have not read it properly." *'Pray, how then should it be read?" inquired the other. "Thus," said the barber: " 'What I do you think I'll shave you for nothing, and give you some drink ?' " H. — Changing Poetry to Prose. ' Changing poetry into the order of prose is an exceed- ingly interesting and instructive exercise. As an exam- ple, six stanzas of Mrs. Hemans's " Landing of the Pil- grims" are here given, together with two specimens of transposition, made by first-grade pupils in one of our large cities. The Landing of the Pilgrims. The breaking waves dashed high On a stern and rock-bound coast. And the woods against a stormy sky Their giant branches toss'd ; MISCELLANEOUS EXEKCISES IN COMPOSITION. 167 And the heavy night hung dark, The hills and waters o'er, When a band of exiles moor'd their bark On the wild New England shore. Not as the conqueror comes, They, the true-hearted, came ; Not with the roll of the stirring drums, And the trumpet that sings of fame ; Not as the flying come, In silence and in fear : — They shook the depths of the desert gloom With their hymns of lofty cheer. What sought they thus afar ? Bright jewels of the mine ? The wealth of seas, the spoils of war ? — They sought a faith's pure shrine ! Ay, call it holy ground, The soil where first they trod ; They have left unstained what there they found — Freedom to worship God. Example 1. — (done badly.) 1st. On a stern and rock-bound coast. The breaking waves dashed high. Their giant branches tossed, the woods against a stormy sky. 2d. When a band of exiles moored their bark, and the heavy niglit hung dark. The hills and waters, on the wild New England shore. 3d. They came true-hearted, not as conquerors come, with the roll of the stirring drums, and the trumpet that sings of fame. 4th. They shook the depths of the desert gloom, with their hymns of lofty cheer, in silence and in fear. Not as the flying come. 9th. The wealth of seas, the spoils of war? Bright jewels of the mine? What sought they thus afar? They sought a faith's pure shrine ! 10th. They have left unstained what there they found ; The soil where first they trod, ay, call it holy ground. Freedom to worship God. Example 2. — (done well.) The breaking waves were dashing on a stern, rock-bound coast, while the woods tossed their giant branches against a stormy sky, and the night lowered heavy and dark over the hills and waters. It was amid such scenes that a band of exiles moored their bark on the wild shore of New England. 168 LANGUAGE LESSONS. These true-hearted men did not come as does the conqueror; for neither the roll of drums nor the blare of trumpets heralded their advent. On the other hand, they did not come in fear and silence as might fugi- tives from their native country. With their hymns of lofty cheer they made the depths of the desert gloom to resound. What were the Pilgrims seeking in this far-off land ? Were they in search of precious stones, or the spoils to he gained by sea or land ? No ; their object was to enjoy religious liberty. This boon they found in their new home, and, as they have transmitted it unstained to us, we may well call the soil where they first trod sacred ground. SUPPLEMENT. I. RECAPITULATION OF INFLECTIONS. 1. Nouns. A noun is inflected to mark the plural number and the possessive case. (See p. 99.) Singular. Plural. Nominative boy boys. Possessive boy's boys'. Objective boy boys. Nominative lady ladies. Possessive lady's , ladies'. Objective lady ladies. Nominative man .men. Possessive man's men's. Objective ." — man men. 2. Pronouns. Some of tlie personal pronouns are changed to express person, number, gender, and case. (See p. 99.) Singular. Plural. Nominative I we. my our. Objective me. us. Singular and Plural. Second Person. — Nominative you. Possessive your. Objective you. Singular. Plural. Third Person. — Nominative he, she, it they. Possessive his, her, its their. Objective him, her, it them. Note. — It will be seen that only pronouns of the third person sin- gular have special forms for the different genders. II 170 SUPPLEMENT. The relative pronoun " who " is changed in form to express case. (See pp. 73, 74.) Singular and Plural, Nominative who. Possessive whose. Objective whom. Note.— "Whose" is also used as the possessive of "that" and "which." 3. Verbs. A verb is changed in form to express mood and tense, and sometimes the person and number of its subject. (See pp. 85-88.) Indicative Mood. Pres. Tense. Past Tense. Future Tense. I 1 I 1 I You You You We ■ walk. He ■walked. ^^ shall or will You We walk. They . You You M Sing.^ lie walks. They J They . Pres. Perfect Tense. Past Perfect Tense. Future Perfect Tense. I 1 I 1 I 1 You You You W^e You ■ have walked. He We - had walked. ^^ ^ shall or will have walked. They J You You 3c? Sing. , he has walked They J They J Potential Mood. Pres. Tense. Past Tense. Pres. Perfect Tense. Past Perfect Tense. I 1 You He We may, . can, or must I 1 You He We "^'f *' You could, TT • would, or ,^ should V may, \ can, or ^^ ■ must ,y h^^'^ You walked, ^u^ might, could, . would, or should You They . walk. You They j have walked. Subjunctive Mood. Present Ten se. Present Perfect Tense. If I If I If you If you If he ' wal k. Jfi- - have walked. ] f we It we If you If you If they J Ifth By J RECAPITULATION OF INFLECTIONS. IVl Imperative Mood. Present Tense, Walk. Used only with a pronoun of the second person. Present Tense. To walk. Infinitives. Piksent Perfect Tense, To have walked. Participles. Present, Walkiiag. Past, Walked. Perfect, Having walked. Note. — By examining the verb, it will be seen that its form is changed but twice on account of the person and number of the subject 4. Adjectives. • An adjective is changed in form to express different degrees of the same quality. (See p. 39.) Positive. Comparative. Superlative. Sharp. Sharper. Sharpest, Manly. Manlier. Manliest. Beautiful. More beautiful. Most beautiful. Beautiful. Less beautiful. Least beautiful. Some adjectives are compared irregularly ; as : Positive. Comparative. Superlative. Good, Better, Best. Well, Better, Best. Evil, Woi-se, Worst. Bad, Worse, Worst. Little, Less, Least. Many, More, Most. Much, More, Most. Far, forth, Farther, further. Farthest, furthest. Near, Nearer, Nearest or next. Late, Later or latter, Latest or last. Old, Older or elder. Oldest or eldest. Hind, Hinder, Hindmost, Up, Upper, Upmost. Out, Utter or outer. Utmost. Fore, Former, Foremost or first. Adverbs are compared in the same manner as adjec- tives. (See p. 51.) 172 SUPPLEMENT, II. EXAMPLES OF ANALYSIS AND PARSING. 1. Birds fly. This is a simple sentence, of which " birds " is the sub- ject and " fly " the predicate. " Birds " is a common noun, of the third person, plural number, and in the' nominative case, and subject of "fly." Rule. — The subject of a verb must be in the nomina- tive case. " Fly " is an irregular intransitive verb, in the indica- tive mood, present tense, and in the third person, plural number, to agree with its subject. Rule. — A verb must agree with its subject in number and person. 2. Young lads often fix on some older boy. This is a simple sentence. Its simple subject is " lads," and its simple predicate " fix." The enlarged subject is "young lads," and the en- larged predicate " often fix on some older boy." " Young " is an adjective, in the positive degree, and describes " lads." Rule. — An adjective limits or describes a noun. " Often " is an adverb, in the positive degree, and limits "fix." Rule. — An adverb limits a verb, an adjective, or an- other adverb. "On" is a preposition, and connects " boy" with "fix." Rule. — A preposition joins a noun or a pronoun to some other word, and shows the relation which one thing bears to another. " Boy " is a common noun, of the third person, singular PRINCIPAL EULES OP SYNTAX. 173 number, and in the objective case, as it is the object of "on." KuLE. — The object of a preposition is in the objective case. III. PRINCIPAL RULES OF SYNTAX. Rule 1. — The subject of a verb must be in the nomi- native case. Rule 2. — A verb must agree with its subject in num- ber and person. Rule 3. — A noun used in explanation of another noun, meaning the same thing, is in the same case by apposi- tion, as : Howard, the philanthropist, was loved by all. Rule 4. — A noun in the predicate, after an intransitive verb, and meaning the same thing as the subject, is in the same case. Rule 5. — A noun used independently, by direct ad- dress, is in the nominative case. Rule 6. — The object of a transitive verb or a preposi- tion is in the objective case. Rule 7. — A noun denoting possession, used to limit another noun, is in the possessive case. Rule 8. — A pronoun must agree in number, gender, and person with the noun or pronoun which it represents. Rule 9. — An adjective limits or describes a noun. Rule 10. — An adverb limits a verb, an adjective, or another adverb. Rule 11. — A preposition joins a noun or a pronoun to some other word, and shows the relation which one thing bears to another. Rule 12. — A conjunction connects words, phrases, clauses, or sentences. Note. — Pronouns are subject to the same rules as nouns. Partici- ples are used as adjectives or nouns, and are subject to the same rules. Interjections have no grammatical relation to other words. LIST OF IRREGULAK VERBS. Present, Abide, Am, Arise, Awake, Bear {to bring forth), Bear {to carry\ Beat, Begin, Bend, Bereave, Beseech, Bid, Bind, Tin-, Bite, Bleed, Blow, Break, Breed, Bring, Build, i2e-, Burn, Burst, Buy, Cast, Catch, Chide, Choose, Cleave {to adhere), Cleave (to split), Cling, Clothe, Come, Be-, Cost, Creep, Crow, Cut, Dare {to venture), Dare {to challenge) is R, Deal, Dig, Do, Mis-, Tin-, Draw, Dream, Drink, Drive, Dwell, Eat, Fall, Be-, Past. Abode, Was, Arose, Awoke, or awaked, Bore, hare, Bore, hare. Beat, Began, Bend, or bended. Bereft, or bereaved. Besought, Bid, bade, Bound, Bit, Bled, Blew, Broke, hrake^ Bred, Brought, Built, or builded. Burnt, or burned, Burst, Bought, Cast, Caught, Chid, Chose, Cleaved, clave. Clove, cleft, clave. Clung, Clad, clothed. Came, Cost, Crept, Crew, or crowed. Cut, Durst, or dared, Dared, Dealt, Dug, or digged. Did, Drew, Dreamt, or dreamed, Drank, Drove, Dwelt, Ate, cat, Fell, Pas,t Participte. Abode. Been. Arisen. Awaked. Born. Borne. Beaten, beat. Begun. Bent. Bereaved, or bereft. Besought. Bidden, bid. Bound. Bitten, bit. Bled. Blown. Broken, hroke. Bred. Brought. Built. Burnt, or burned. Burst. Bought. Cast. Caught. Chidden, chid. Chosen. Cleaved. Cleft, cloven, or cleaved. Clung. Clad, clothed. Come. Cost. Crept. Crowed. Cut. Dared. Dared. Dealt. Dug, or digged. Done. Drawn. Dreamt, or dreamed. Drunk. Driven. Dwelt. Eaten. Fallen. LIST OF IRREGULAR VERBS. 175 Present, Feed, Feel, Fight, Find, Flee, Fling, Fly, Forbear, Forget, Forsake, Freeze, Freight, Get, ife-. For-. Gild, Gird, Be-^ En-, GiyGy For-, Mis-f Go, Grave, Mi-y Grind, Grow, Hang,* Have, Hear, Heave, Hew, Hide, Hit, Hold, Be-, WU7i-y Hurt, Keep, Kneel, Knit, Know, Lade, to load,-f Lay, Lead, Mis-j Leave, Lend, Let, Lie (to recline), Light, Load, Lose, Make, Mean, Meet, Mow, Pay, Be-, Pen {to inclose). Put, Quit, Read, Rend, Rid, Past, Past PartidpU, Fed, Fed. Felt, Felt. Fought, Fought. Found, Found. Fled, Fled. Flung, Flung. Flew, Flown. Forbore, Forborne. Forgot, Forgotten, forgot. Forsook, Forsaken. Froze, Frozen. Freighted, Fraught, r. Got, Got, gotten. Gilt, or gilded. Gilt, or gilded. Girt, w girded, Girt, or girded. Gave, Given. Went, Gone. Graved, Graved, or graven. Ground. Ground, Grew, Grown. Hung, Hung. Had, Had. Heard, Heard. Heaved, or hove, Heaved. Hewed, Hewn, or hewed. Hid, Hidden, hid. Hit, Hit. Held, Held, holdcn. Hurt, Hurt. Kept, Kept. Knelt, or kneeled, Knelt, or kneeled. Knit, Knit. Knew, Known. Laded, Laden. Laid, Laid. Led, Led. Left, Left. Lent, Lent. Let, Let. Lay, Lain. Lighted, or lit. Lighted, or lit. Loaded, Laden, oi' loaded. Lost, Lost. Made, Made. Meant, Meant. Met, Met. Mowed, Mown, or mowed. Paid, Paid. Pent, or penned. Pent, or penned. Put, Put. Quit, or quitted. Quit, or quitted. Read, Read. Rent, Rent. Rid, Rid. • Hang, to take away life by hanging, is regular, t Lade, to dip, is regular. 176 SUPPLEMENT. iVewnf. Past. Ride, Rode, Ring, Rang, rung. Rise,^-, Rose, Rive, Rived, Rot, Rotted, Run, Ran, rwn, Saw, Sawed, Say/ Said, Seek, Saw, Sought, Seethe, Seethed, or sod, Sell, Sold, Send. Set, Be-, Sent, Set, Shake, Shook, Shape, Jfw-, Shaped, Shave, Shaved, Shear, Sheared, Shed, Shed, Shine, Shone, or shined. Shoe, Shod, Shoot, Shot, Show, Showed, Shred, Shred, Shrink, Shrunk, shrank. Shut, Shut, Shig, Sang, sung. Sunk, sa7ik. Sink, Sit, Sat, Slay, Slew, Sleep, Slept, Slide, Slid, Sling, Slink, Slung, slang. Slunk, Slit, Slit, Smite, Smote, Sow {to scattei'), Sowed, Speak, Be-, Spoke, f^ake, Speed, Sped, Spell, Spelt, or spelled. Spend, Mis-, Spent, Spill, Spilt, or spilled. Spin, Spun, span, Spit,^-, &pit, spat, Split, Split, Spread, JOe-, Spread, Spring, Sprang, sprung, Stand, m^/i-, etc. Stood, Steal. Stole, Stick. Stuck, Sting, , Stride, Stung, Stroke, strid. Strike, Struck, String, Strung, Strive, Strove, Strow, or Strew, Be-, Strowed, or strewed. Swear, Swore, sivare, Past Participlt. Ridden. Rung. Risen. Riven, or rived. Rotted, or rotten. Run. Sawn, or sawed. Said. Seen. Sought. Seethed, or sodden. Sold. Sent. Set. Shaken. Shapen, or shaped. Shaven, or shaved. Shorn, or sheared. Shed. Shone, or shined. Shod. Shot. Showed, or shown. Shred. Shrunk. Shut. Sung. Sunk. Sat. Slain. Slept. Sliddcn, slid. Slung. Slunk. Slit. Smitten, smit. Sowed, or sown. Spoken. Sped. Spelt, or spelled. Spent. Spilt, or spilled. Spun. Spit. Split. • Spread. Sprung. Stood. Stolen. Stuck. Stung. Stridden, strid. Struck, stricken. Strung. Striven. Strown, strewn. Sworn. LIST OF IRREGULAR VERBS. Ill Presmt, Past. Sweat, Sweat, or sweated, Sweep, Swept, Swelled, Swell, Swim, Swam, swum. Swing, Swung, Take, ^-, etc., Took, Teach, Mis-, Be-, Taught, Tear, Tore, tare. Tell, Told, Think, Be-, Thought, Thrive, Throve, or thrived, Throw, Threw, Thrust, Thrust, Tread, Trod, Wax, Waxed, Wear, Wore, Weave, Wove, Weep, Wept, Wet, Wet, or wetted. Whet, Whet, or whetted. Win, Won,' Wind, Wound, Work, Wrought, or worked. Wring, Wrung, or wringed, Write, Wrote, Past PartidpU. Sweat, or sweated. Swept. Swollen, or swelled. Swum. Swung. Taken. Taught. Torn. Told. Thought. Thriven, or thrived. Thrown. Thrust. Trodden, trod. Waxen, or waxed. Worn. Woven. Wept. Wet, or wetted. Whet, or whetted. Won. Wound. Wrought, or worked. Wrung. Written. H2 THE END, Harper's Catalogue. The attention of gentlemen, in town or country, designing to form Libraries or enrich their Literary Collections, is respectfully invited to Harper's Catalogue, which will be found to comprise a large pro- portion of the standard and most esteemed works in English and Classical Literature — comprehending over three thousand VOLUMES — which are offered, in most instances, at less than one- half the cost of similar productions in England. 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